alt Hacker NewsSo how is this startup going to be a value add long term? If they can cut all the devs, what moat is there? What's stopping their customers from just prompting their own model?
Seriously asking, why would this look like a good business model to be in? If they don't need anyone besides a technical non-developer to create the product, why would this look like a good business? If it's B2B, then most of their customers will have that type of IT person on staff.
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The hard lesson is that quality will be the new moat.
For decades, velocity, time to market and features all drove the industry. But AI puts speed in everyone's hands.
But quality is still hard. Maybe harder than ever.
The question is "what business value is AI driving?" and the answer was "a solo founder cut all the devs and still delivered a product".
Separate question: "now that AI is here and development isn't a moat any more, how does a business defend itself from competition?"
That second question is a direct result of AI. Five years ago the amount of cost and effort spent on software development was a moat. Now it's not. So that answers the first question completely, I think.
As for the second question - market sector knowledge, customer contacts and industry reputation, all the usual non-technical things that make a moat. Also, we may now be living in a world where software companies cannot expect to be monopolies in their markets any more. This company will have to compete with many similar competitors for market share, like in most other markets. I think this is a good thing. Less enshittification will ensue.
Not to mention the possibility of 4 competitors popping up over night.
A dry cleaner and a car wash can be a good business. Outsource things that are not your core competency. A moat means you can defend it better, but in this case your business can capture the value of them not having the IT person on staff and not having to spend the tokens. It’s a good old fashioned business.