From the early days of coding with low-level machine languages to the profound influence of agile methodologies, software development — and often IT careers – have evolved through fits and starts of stagnation and innovation, denial, and acceptance. But the emergence of generative artificial intelligence (genAI) represents the most rapid transformation to application development seen to date.
Consider that it was little more than a year ago that the introduction of OpenAI’s ChatGPT “sparked a reimagining of the role of AI within software development” and caused IT leaders to plunge ahead with initiatives to exploit a technology “shrouded by unknowns.”
Foundry reached out to the CIO Experts Network, a community of IT professionals and technology industry influencers, to weigh in on the top three developments they see shaping the next generation of applications. To no one’s surprise, genAI dominated the responses.
AI: the 800-pound gorilla!
There is no denying that genAI and the future potential of AI in general is the proverbial 800-pound gorilla that nobody can ignore.
“AI truly enhances applications by enabling them to adapt and learn over time,” says Scott Schober (@ScottBVS), President/CEO at Berkeley Varitronics Systems, Inc. “This ultimately will improve efficiencies, the user experience, and will automate those mundane tasks that humans are not able to effectively handle.”
Will Kelly (@willkelly), a writer focused on DevOps and the cloud, predicts generative AI “will forever reshape how enterprises build, operate, and secure next-generation applications.” He expects it to displace most low-code/no-code application development tools. “IT must respond to generative AI, which involves managing and securing large datasets, implementing AI-driven automation for IT operations, and staying abreast of ethical AI considerations,” he adds.
Others expect a more complementary relationship between AI and low-code/no-code. “Generative AI will accelerate the development of applications tailored for a specific goal or task,” says Peter van Barneveld, Innovation Manager at Dustin. “It can assist in application development by explaining tools used, as well as by writing code … One of the possibilities in this context is the utilization of low-code/no-code applications, which can significantly benefit from this fast-growing development.”
Growing business expectations and budget impacts
Growing business pressure to respond to AI developments is likely to impact IT budgets.
“With generative AI and AI becoming a staple in every application, businesses are looking at a significant uptick in investments in AI skills, network I/O, data warehousing, and multi-cloud strategies,” says Kieran Gilmurray (@KieranGilmurray),
CEO at Digital Automation and Robotics Limited. “This will stretch IT budgets and teams even further than current, necessitating budget reconfiguration and a lot of work getting the data and people needed to get GenAI to deliver business value.”
The technology also has the potential to disrupt the relationship between IT and users. “Employees outside of the IT department are going to be armed with tools that can deliver applications to them within minutes,” says Alex Farr (@AlexFarr_IT), Chief Technology Officer at Christie Group. “IT departments are going to have to educate staff about the use of these tools and ensure they are monitored appropriately. They will need to demonstrate the additional value that can be realized by continuing to use the IT department even in an age of AI.”
Isaac Sacolick (@nyike), President of StarCIO and author of Digital Trailblazer, has a similar viewpoint: “IT will need to lower the skill set when building proprietary applications while seeking configurable and easy-to-integrate SaaS solution. To address the skill set and user experience, IT should consider developing with low-code platforms and governing citizen development with no-code solutions. Business leaders will seek increased productivity and improved decision-making, so more applications will require embedded machine learning and AI capabilities.”
And now, for the rest of the story
While it may seem like AI is all anyone wants to talk about right now, there actually are other technologies our panelists see as impactful drivers of future applications, including low-code and no-code development, edge computing and 5G connectivity, although its likely that AI will play a role in each.
“IT teams are re-organizing and improving their workflows and development processes, with the help of a variety of sophisticated AI tools, integrated development environments, Platform as a Service (PaaS), Infrastructure-as-Code, DevSecOps, AR and VR simulations and training, automated code review and testing, processes automation, and facilitated deployment in hybrid and multi-cloud environments,” says Elitsa Krumova (@Eli_Krumova), a Global Thought Leader and Tech Influencer. “The next generation of applications is bringing fast advancements for businesses by unleashing the power of big data and data science, speeding up digital transformation, building competitive next-generation products, and accelerating business growth.”
Dipti Parmar (@dipTparmar), Chief Strategist at Dipti Parmar Consulting and Co-Founder at 99stairs, also is looking for a resolution to an ongoing IT debate: “IT has oscillated between centralized and decentralized computing for like, ever. Finally, we’re starting to see the ideal combination of cloud and edge processing that improves application efficiency, reduces latency, and simplifies operations for end users.”
Meanwhile, Gene De Libero (@GeneDeLibero), Principal at Digital Mindshare LLC, points out that “AR and VR are transitioning from niche technologies to mainstream application platforms and are beginning to revolutionize fields like medicine and education by enabling immersive 3D interactions. This means new challenges for IT to establish new protocols, ensure data privacy, and create secure environments for these advanced interactions.”
Those AR and VR applications are likely to be closely tied to edge computing advances. “Edge computing appreciates speed and time savings since it can effectively process data closer to its source rather than relying solely on centralized cloud servers,” according to Schober. “This is especially important when integrating the hardware and software of IoT (Internet of Things), AR, and VR together.”
For those eager for greater transformation, these certainly are heady times; for those more hesitant, hold on tight as you’re likely in for a wild ride.
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