Inside Microsoft’s chaos vocabulary: A former engineer explains why phrases like “even the fires are on fire” weren’t jokes, they were survival tools

Anyone who’s worked in a fast‑moving tech environment knows that teams eventually invent their own language to cope with the chaos. At Microsoft, that language became surprisingly vivid. A former engineer has now explained what those phrases meant and why they captured the reality of working inside a company where priorities could change overnight, and fires sometimes felt like they were multiplying.

In an insightful blog post in his ongoing Old New Thing series, the engineer shared some tidbits about the atmosphere at Microsoft "when something has gone horribly wrong and requires immediate attention".

Chen revealed that the company would often use corporate jargon like "on fire" to describe such instances. "I’ll be back in Redmond on Monday. Is anything on fire?" the engineer indicated when sharing an example of how the metaphor is used at the company to check in and see if there are any emergencies.

"I think the Nosebleed branch is still on fire," cited Chen. "This person is saying that they think that the Nosebleed branch is still in very bad shape. My sense that being on fire is worse than being on the floor. If a branch is on the floor, then that probably means that there’s a problem with the build or release process. But if the branch is on fire, it suggests that they have identified some critical issue in the branch, and everybody is scrambling to figure it out and fix it."

"Even the fires are on fire," Chen shared some citations from his own inbox.

Perhaps more interestingly, Chen revealed minutes for a meeting titled “What’s on Fire Meetings”. He further disclosed that the meeting was in place to discuss and report on whatever disaster was unfolding at the time.

Chen also indicated that his team had a dedicated channel called Fires where they'd report on any disasters and collaborate on ways to handle the issue. "Putting out fires is the preferred way to say that someone is trying to fix whatever is on fire," the engineer added.

This reminds me of the time OpenAI CEO Sam Altman declared a “code red” to enhance ChatGPT's quality following the successful launch and emergence of Google's Gemini 3 model, consequently forcing The AI firm to delay other products, like advertising and AI agents, to deal with the situation.

The executive later revealed that the company had actually declared code red multiple times as a response to competitive threats. "It's good to be paranoid," added Altman.

Windows Central's Take

Microsoft’s quirky internal jargon might sound amusing from the outside, but it reflects something deeper about how teams inside the company have learned to cope with constant pressure and shifting priorities. When phrases like “even the fires are on fire” become part of everyday communication, it says a lot about the pace, expectations, and cultural friction that can build inside a massive organization trying to move quickly while carrying decades of legacy behind it.

What stands out most in the engineer’s account isn’t just the humor, but the honesty. These expressions weren’t invented to entertain. They were a shorthand for survival, a way for people to acknowledge the chaos without losing their footing in it. And in a strange way, that language becomes a reminder of how human these environments really are. Behind every product launch, every pivot, every crisis, there are teams trying to make sense of the moment in whatever way they can.

If anything, the jargon shows that even inside one of the world’s most influential tech companies, the experience of navigating uncertainty is universal. The words may be unique to Microsoft, but the feeling behind them is something anyone who’s worked through a turbulent project will recognize instantly.

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