Software

From a certain point of view, there are two kinds of people in the world: builders and not-builders. This isn’t judgment—it’s observation. Some people consume. Others create. Builders can’t help it.

AI has made code cheap and abundant. The scarce resource is now knowing what to build, not how. This is creating a rapid split between companies that sell workflows and companies that sell capabilities. Only one of these will survive.

A Scottish football manager once said, “Some people think football is more important than life. But they are wrong. It’s much more important than that.” When intelligence becomes a utility, the ability to ACT on it becomes everything. In today’s software world, Agency is more important than anything else!

The AI train has left the station. Some of us are on board, generating entire modules from specs. Others are still on the platform debating whether the train is even real. Four smart people wrote about this shift this past week. They all agree on what it means. And I agree with them.

Software development is stratifying into three distinct tiers. Where you land will determine whether you make more money, the same, or far less than today.

The evolution of AI-assisted programming has reached a pivotal moment, transforming from simple code completion to truly collaborative AI agents. This shift represents not just an improvement in tooling, but a fundamental change in how software is developed.

The US Navy gave me a solid foundation in leadership and operational excellence. But translating that into the business world requires a few more things.

Book review - free “Blowing up the Monolith” book from Kong.