--- title: A couple of days ago, I sat down with Vivek Bharathi and dumped my brains. Here's the interview... link: https://ghuntley.com/frontier/ source: ghuntley-com published: 2026-03-12T18:55:07Z updated: 2026-03-12T18:55:07Z first_seen: 2026-09-27T19:29:15.293681927Z authors: - Geoffrey Huntley labels: - ai summary: 'Below you''ll find an AI transcription of everything we riffed about. Key distinction: Software Development vs. Software Engineering: Software development (typing code, prompting LLMs) is accelerating massively and becoming ubiquitous—anyone (e.g., a hairdresser using Cursor) can now be a "developer" due to abundant' content: extracted html: 2026-03-12-a-couple-of-days-ago-i-sat-down-with-vivek-bharathi-and.html preview: file: 2026-03-12-a-couple-of-days-ago-i-sat-down-with-vivek-bharathi-and.preview-5fdf02cebfa2.webp width: 256 height: 143 color: '#c7acaa' images: - source: https://storage.ghost.io/c/06/e5/06e5d12b-0328-469d-a0d0-3a0f0ba34c46/content/images/size/w1200/2026/03/download--1-.jpeg original: file: 2026-03-12-a-couple-of-days-ago-i-sat-down-with-vivek-bharathi-and.image-c124b39ed837.jpg width: 1200 height: 670 color: '#fefefe' - source: https://storage.ghost.io/c/06/e5/06e5d12b-0328-469d-a0d0-3a0f0ba34c46/content/images/size/w2000/2026/03/download--1-.jpeg original: file: 2026-03-12-a-couple-of-days-ago-i-sat-down-with-vivek-bharathi-and.image-0d22135543b8.jpg width: 1376 height: 768 color: '#fefefe' - source: https://storage.ghost.io/c/06/e5/06e5d12b-0328-469d-a0d0-3a0f0ba34c46/content/media/2026/03/AI-Expert--30----Rationalizing--Business-Moat-and--technical-Talent-for--agenticai-era--RIs6wikZykI-_thumb.jpg original: file: 2026-03-12-a-couple-of-days-ago-i-sat-down-with-vivek-bharathi-and.image-307ac48332c1.jpg width: 640 height: 360 color: '#101010' --- By [Geoffrey Huntley](https://ghuntley.com/author/ghuntley/) in [AI](https://ghuntley.com/tag/ai/) — 13 Mar 2026 ![A couple of days ago, I sat down with Vivek Bharathi and dumped my brains. Here's the interview...](https://storage.ghost.io/c/06/e5/06e5d12b-0328-469d-a0d0-3a0f0ba34c46/content/images/size/w2000/2026/03/download--1-.jpeg) 0:00 /11:14 ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/06/e5/06e5d12b-0328-469d-a0d0-3a0f0ba34c46/content/media/2026/03/AI-Expert--30----Rationalizing--Business-Moat-and--technical-Talent-for--agenticai-era--RIs6wikZykI-_thumb.jpg) Below you'll find an AI transcription of everything we riffed about. Key distinction: Software Development vs. Software Engineering: - Software development (typing code, prompting LLMs) is accelerating massively and becoming ubiquitous—anyone (e.g., a hairdresser using Cursor) can now be a "developer" due to abundant AI knowledge/tools.\ - Software engineering remains essential and is evolving: engineers now act like locomotive engineers — keeping the "train" on tracks by designing safe, reliable systems/automations rather than working "in" the business (manual coding).\ - Shift focus to designing loops, automations, safety mechanisms (e.g., sandboxing, credential management, security), risk engineering, and responsible AI utilization. ## Implications for professionals: - If your identity is tied to being a traditional "software developer" (keyboard typing), it's a tough time—prompting for outcomes is the new norm. - If your employer bans AI tools, leave immediately: it's business suicide to ignore AI, while staying risks employability suicide as the market for manual coders shrinks rapidly. - Engineers should prioritize raw technical/cognitive skills → engineer away concerns (e.g., replace binary code reviews with risk-based approaches, feature flags, constrained blast radius, auto-migrations). ## Open source is "dead" (or greatly diminished): - Traditional open-source libraries existed to ease hiring and sharing reusable code. - Now, with AI generation, there's little point: generating code avoids maintainer burnout, GitHub issue delays, abandoned projects, supply-chain attacks (e.g., npm takeovers), and Dependabot update toil. - Better to generate first-party code for faster evolution, full control, and no human "tool calls" (which disqualifies true AGI-like autonomy). - Exceptions: highly sensitive areas like PKI/SSL where generation isn't appropriate. ## Broader industry shifts in an abundance era: - Software moves from scarcity (differentiated libraries, hard-to-replicate tech) to abundance (easy generation/reimplementation).\ - Many software products become hyper-commodity (like utilities: electricity, web hosting) — easily screenshot + reimplemented via AI (e.g., Claude). ### Vendor lock-in and switching costs vanish (e.g., auto-migrating databases/apps). - True moats now lie in non-technical areas: contracts, relationships, handshakes, stakes, distribution, taste/judgment — the "hard things of business." - Unit economics of software have fundamentally changed → questions if software remains investable (VCs unsure about moats, fundraising challenges). > Future: hyper-personalized software; old models of building/scaling via scarcity are disrupted. ### Closing advice - Stay relevant by running fast, staying curious, and adapting to the "brave new world." ps. this interview is also available: - on youtube at [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMVyUu-GTpU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMVyUu-GTpU&ref=ghuntley.com) - X - [https://x.com/GeoffreyHuntley/status/2032163849067987280](https://x.com/GeoffreyHuntley/status/2032163849067987280?ref=ghuntley.com) - LinkedIn - [https://www.linkedin.com/posts/geoffreyhuntley_a-couple-of-days-ago-i-sat-down-with-vivek-activity-7437931906714791938-4_75](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/geoffreyhuntley_a-couple-of-days-ago-i-sat-down-with-vivek-activity-7437931906714791938-4_75?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAABQKuUB2AJ059keUcRUVLbtmoa6miLVlTI) ### p.p.s don't miss out on free lifetime access Join thousands getting premium insights delivered weekly. **Subscribe now and you'll never pay** - even when I start charging new subscribers. 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