Lazy is the new fast: How Lazy Imports and Cinder accelerate machine learning at Meta

What this post added

This post details the adoption of Lazy Imports and the Python Cinder runtime to accelerate machine learning development at Meta. It describes the 'time to first batch' (TTFB) challenge in ML training, explaining how Lazy Imports defer module loading until needed, reducing startup times. The post highlights compatibility challenges with existing libraries like PyTorch and Numba, and the need to balance performance with dependability by disabling Lazy Imports before the first batch. It also mentions the learning curve for developers and future plans for streamlining onboarding, enhancing tooling, and community collaboration.