Dive Brief:
- IT leaders are worried that growing AI use among developers will stunt skill growth, according to a Canva survey published last week. The software company surveyed 300 technology decision-makers.
- Nearly one-third of IT leaders cited overreliance on AI without accountability as their top concern. More than 1 in 5 respondents said they worry about careers stalling for junior employees amid growing AI use.
- Almost all technology decision makers — 95% — are wary of risks accompanying AI-generated code, according to the report. In an attempt to maintain quality standards, 93% of IT leaders said AI code is always or often reviewed before going into production.
Dive Insight:
Most enterprises now expect developers to use AI in their daily workflow. Adding the technology has changed processes, skill requirements and risks.
“The engineers who will thrive in this new era are adopting AI to enhance their thinking and output, not replace it,” Brendan Humphreys, CTO at Canva, said in a release accompanying the report.
Governance and oversight are critical as organizations adopt AI-reliant approaches to software development.
“We’re trying to deliver enterprise-grade software that holds up and works well,” Sean Tibor, director of global cloud engineering at Mondelēz International, told CIO Dive earlier this summer. “We still have to be heavily accountable and responsible for the code that we’re using and generating.”
The snackmaker has cautiously explored vibe coding, a term referring to the use of AI tools to build applications, and it’s not the only one as enterprises try to leverage the latest development techniques while upholding standards and efficacy.
Valmark Financial Group CIO Geoff Moore highlighted two use cases in a LinkedIn post last week: using the technique to build a life settlement policy estimator and a Zoom integration console.
Moore said vibe coding can accelerate development in some cases and empower employees to build solutions that weren't previously accessible to them.
“For more complex scenarios, a more experienced partner will likely need to ride shotgun to make sure the app follows design patterns, security best practices, and is something that can be supported by the team,” said Moore.
Moore recommended CIOs and their teams should track changes, allot time for revisions and keep development context in mind while exploring potential use cases.
The quickly evolving AI landscape poses challenges for enterprises as hype-filled claims cloud the reality of accompanying drawbacks and pitfalls.
Vibe coding and low-code tools have created a sea of capabilities that can quickly transform concepts into executable applications, according to Gap EVP and CTO Sven Gerjets.
“Great for innovation,” Gerjets said in a LinkedIn post last week. “Terrible for focus.”
