# Wat by Gary Bernhardt

Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/wat-talk/

8 people recommended Wat by Gary Bernhardt in Hacker News comments, 1 had mixed feelings and 1 criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 4 of 12 months, in 4 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule.

5 of the 8 people who recommend it commented in one thread, “The Birth and Death of JavaScript (2014)”.

**Verdict:** A short, funny talk poking fun at JavaScript quirks, still a favorite years later. Critics say a few of its points are mistaken.

Summary written by Claude from 8 comments.

## Why people recommend it

- Funny and still entertaining years later (2 comments in the sample): "It's a funny video, still after 15 years of seeing it, I'll give you that." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46614592)) "Archaic maybe, but still brings a smile" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48249161))
- Short and a longtime favorite (2 comments in the sample): "best 5 minutes of your day guaranteed" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48527845)) "was my favorite of all time" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48535062))

## Other conference talks people recommend

- [Simple Made Easy by Rich Hickey](https://hackerapproved.com/p/simple-made-easy/): 22 recommend, 0 mixed, 1 criticize
- [The Birth and Death of JavaScript by Gary Bernhardt](https://hackerapproved.com/p/birth-and-death-of-javascript/): 11 recommend, 0 mixed, 2 criticize
- [Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs Video Lectures](https://hackerapproved.com/p/structure-and-interpretation-of-computer-programs-video-lectures/): 11 recommend, 0 mixed, 1 criticize
- [Hammock Driven Development by Rich Hickey](https://hackerapproved.com/p/hammock-driven-development-talk/): 7 recommend, 0 mixed, 0 criticize

## The badge

A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged.

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Wat by Gary Bernhardt", https://hackerapproved.com/p/wat-talk/ (8 recommend, 1 mixed, 1 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026).

Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.