This is actually a decent use case for it. I should have been more nuanced in my response.
I have seen more then one project fail when they use lamdas to serve apis. This is because of the cold start problem, but also because lambda does have scaling issues unless you work around them. By scaling I mean greater then 1000 tps.
All of the services performed within lambdas SLA but failed to meet the requirements that the project had.
The solution was always to wrap whatever function it called in a traditional app and deploy it using a contanerized solution where response times dramatically improved and services became more reliable.
The idea behind lambda is good, but it can't beat more traditional stacks at the moment. One could argue that most projects don't have these requirements, and I would agree, but the marketing behind lambda doesn't make that clear.
That's because it is. What makes restaurants different is their specialization in an area, and excelling at that along with atmosphere. Without that there's no value add.
I have worked with these large kitchens that can make different types of cuisines depending on your want, but they all turn out mediocre.
My family completely stopped ordering out during this pandemic because most restaurants have lost the key employees who make their food special, there is no atmosphere, and GrubHub et al add no value.
I agree with OP that writing a task in a non-core language is concerning, and also agree with you that there might be more going on.
I've worked with both types of team leads -- those that are there because they are technically proficient, as well as those that are good at handling the politics so the team doesn't and relies upon Sr. engineers to guide the project technically.
It's completely situational as to what is appropriate. Are you a 6+ person team in a large org (or in a small dysfunctional org)? Then you want some one who can handle the politics. Are you a 4 person team that owns your company's entire tech stack? Then you want someone who is really technically proficient.
Since OP mentioned the manager of this person, I suspect it's a larger org where politics is king, otherwise they would report to a VP or higher directly.
I thought a lot of other large "fast food" retailers do the same for their equipment? Chik-fil-a does something similar for quality control and some predictive cooking if I recall correctly.
I have seen more then one project fail when they use lamdas to serve apis. This is because of the cold start problem, but also because lambda does have scaling issues unless you work around them. By scaling I mean greater then 1000 tps.
All of the services performed within lambdas SLA but failed to meet the requirements that the project had.
The solution was always to wrap whatever function it called in a traditional app and deploy it using a contanerized solution where response times dramatically improved and services became more reliable.
The idea behind lambda is good, but it can't beat more traditional stacks at the moment. One could argue that most projects don't have these requirements, and I would agree, but the marketing behind lambda doesn't make that clear.