Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu has shared his insights on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the software industry, emphasising that while AI can automate repetitive coding tasks, it cannot entirely replace human expertise. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Vembu addressed the growing concerns about AI taking over jobs, offering a balanced perspective on the capabilities and limitations of AI.
Vembu acknowledged that AI is capable of handling up to
90% of coding tasks
, particularly those involving “boilerplate” or repetitive code. However, he stressed the importance of human involvement in addressing “essential complexity”—the core engineering challenges that require creativity, intuition, and problem-solving skills.
“AI can make mincemeat of patterns already discovered by humans. Can it find totally new patterns? That is much rarer and requires qualities like ‘taste’ or ‘knowing where to dig,'” Vembu wrote, highlighting the unique abilities of humans in discovering new solutions.
Read Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu’s complete post here
When people say “AI will write 90% of the code” I readily agree because 90% of what programmers write is “boiler plate”.
There is “essential complexity” in programming and then there is a lot of “accidental complexity” (that is the boiler plate stuff) and this is very old wisdom from the Mythical Man Month.
AI is doing a great job eliminating the accidental complexity. Humans still needed to deal with the essential complexity.
In essence, AI can make mincemeat of patterns already discovered (by humans). Can it find totally new patterns? As with humans, that is much rarer and a quality known as “taste” or “knowing where to dig” or “follow a hunch or conviction all the way” is needed to discover new patterns. I don’t know if AI can do this. I don’t know if that can be brute forced.
Vembu’s remarks come at a time when AI is reshaping the software development landscape, with industry leaders like OpenAI CEO Sam Altman predicting a reduction in demand for software engineers. Altman has noted that AI is already responsible for generating over
50% of code
in many companies, and the trend is expected to grow.
Despite these advancements, Vembu believes that human expertise will remain indispensable for tackling complex challenges and driving innovation. Vembu’s comments underscore the need for a balanced approach to AI integration, where automation complements human creativity rather than replacing it.
