Thinking in public
Notes on how AI changes operating models, why APIs become business capabilities, and what helps product and engineering organisations move faster.
By now even the skeptics reluctantly accept that it's indisputable that vibecoding / AI-assisted coding makes it much faster to ship software. But it's equally true that the speed does not make the value last. I'd argue it makes it easier to chase the wrong goal because "it's so easy to progress"
I keep encountering this conversation. Twice this week... One over coffee, one over teams. If a team can vibe code a working SaaS tool in a short time, why keep paying for the SaaS version. Good question. Nobody in either conversation answered it with a number.
We're currently prepping for the MRI Ascend conference in APAC. It's made me think back to the most valuable professional development course I’ve ever done. It came completely out of left field. It was a storytelling course.
When generative AI and the frontier LLMs started to become practical, I pushed every team in my portfolio to build an AI feature. I wasn't stressed about what they were building, but I pushed hard to get them all to build something. This wasn't because I thought adding on an AI feature would change the business or even make us money. In fact, we never charged customers for any of them as an added feature. I did this for the sole purpose of forcing people to engage with this new technology.
A long time ago, way back when I still had hair, Microsoft introduced Team Foundation Server and one of the productivity metrics commonly reported on was lines of code written per developer. At the time, it seemed like a relevant metric. More code meant more output, no?
A little over a year ago I shared a presentation internally with our CEO, execs and other stakeholders urging action as AI was rapidly accelerating the time to market for new products, creating a threat to incumbents. I outlined several moats I believe we could exploit and I still believe they are valuable space to occupy - for example domain knowledge, compliance capabilities, massive datasets. I did miss one key moat that hindsight allows me to appreciate more fully: Distribution.
Around this time of year as things wind down, I always end up reflecting on the year and ensuring we have a solid plan to kick off the next year. This year was about doing the hard work that compounds.... Less noise. More outcomes. Stronger products. Stronger teams.
If you thought coding was just about clean architecture and efficient logic, vibecoding would like a word (preferably in monospace font, glowing in soft lavender neon, backed by a lo-fi beat). What started as an aesthetic subculture blending programming with mood, visuals, and audio has morphed into something weirder, richer, and more creative.
The first marathon in my slightly unhinged “three marathons in under six months” challenge is officially complete. The Great Ocean Road Marathon delivered everything it promised: sweeping ocean views, leg-destroying hills, a mild Antarctic breeze fresh off the Bass Strait, and an almost meditative stretch of road that occasionally whispered, "Why are you doing this to yourself?"
