Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu has sparked a discussion about the growing role of artificial intelligence in software development. He shared his views on how engineers should use AI while keeping their own understanding and technical judgment. The discussion began after an X post claimed that many technology teams are increasingly using AI tools for almost every stage of software development.
The post also mentioned that developers are being pushed to release products faster, often depending heavily on AI-generated work. However, he warned engineers against allowing AI to replace their understanding of the systems they build. He compared the situation to driving a fancy new car that people barely understand how to operate and warned that moving too fast could invite disaster. Vembu stressed that AI can help developers write code more efficiently, but engineers should remain deeply involved in understanding the systems they create.
The post said AI is being used to write code, create product requirements, test products and resolve tickets. Responding to the post, Vembu said AI can be a powerful tool for improving productivity. Vembu said that he tells Zoho engineers to use AI but never give up their understanding to it.
Social media users gave mixed reactions to the post. One user commented, “This issue is not limited to coding. I see consulting and support teams use Claude / Chatgpt to generate presentations and materials which get shipped to customers. Another user noted, “The problem isn’t Claude writing the code. The problem is humans shipping code they no longer understand.
“I felt this when talking to some folks building a product with Claude/Codex,” added a third user.
