Skip to main content

Vision

Pikku is built on three core visions that shape how you build backends. Like a chameleon adapting to its environment, Pikku keeps your logic intact while flexing to fit wherever you need to run.

Function-First: Write Once, Call Anywhere​

Your business logic shouldn't care how it's invoked. Write it once as a typed function. Call it from anywhere:

  • HTTP - REST APIs with OpenAPI
  • WebSocket - Real-time bidirectional communication
  • Server-Sent Events - Progressive enhancement, stream updates
  • Queue - Background jobs and async processing
  • Cron - Scheduled tasks
  • RPC - Internal function-to-function calls
  • MCP - AI agent tools (Claude, GPT, and more)
  • CLI - Command-line interfaces

No code duplication. No logic fragmentation. Just functions.

This flexibility means you can build for traditional servers and serverless platforms using the same codebase - without the headaches of mixing paradigms.

Current limitations: File uploads and non-JSON content types aren't supported yet.

Deploy Anywhere: Zero Lock-In​

Pick your runtime. Change it tomorrow. Your code stays the same.

Start with a monolith. Scale to microservices. Optimize individual functions. All without rewriting a single line of business logic.

No framework lock-in. No vendor lock-in. Just adaptability.

Developer Experience: Less Boilerplate, More Building​

Pikku is for developers who hate boilerplate and love simplicity.

Your functions receive:

  • Services (database, cache, logger)
  • Data (validated automatically)
  • User sessions

They return:

  • Data (or streaming updates)
  • Errors

That's it. No HTTP headers. No status codes. No protocol details. No decorators. Just pure TypeScript.

TypeScript Does the Heavy Lifting​

Pikku uses your types to automate everything:

  • Runtime Validation - JSON schemas generated from TypeScript types (no extra libraries)
  • Type-Safe Clients - Auto-generated HTTP fetch, WebSocket, and RPC clients
  • OpenAPI Docs - Complete API documentation from your functions
  • Smart Tree-Shaking - Bundle only what you deploy (coming soon: service-level tree-shaking)
  • Next.js Integration - Typed wrappers for seamless full-stack development
  • Session Management - Built-in auth and permissions across all protocols

You write functions. Pikku handles the rest. No decorators, no runtime reflection, no magic—just static analysis of plain TypeScript.

The Greener Future: Optimize for the Planet​

Infrastructure choices have environmental consequences. Pikku's flexibility lets you experiment with different runtimes and measure their impact.

VMs? Containers? Serverless? Test them all with the same codebase. Compare:

  • CPU cycles
  • Memory consumption
  • Carbon footprint

Imagine a future where Pikku helps you optimize not just for performance and cost, but for environmental impact too. Choose the runtime that's best for your users and the planet.

This vision is still in the concept stage, but we're committed to making performance optimization and environmental responsibility go hand in hand.