In 2023, 43.78 percent of developers surveyed in a study by Stack Overflow said they would use AI for software development. Just six months later, this figure had already risen to 81% in a study by CodeSignal. So the question must be allowed: Is coding dead in 2025? And what does the trend mean for companies that are currently looking for a partner to develop software?  

This article will therefore focus on the question of what role AI really plays in software development today and how companies can benefit from it.

Basics: What is AI in software development?

AI will not be able to develop complex software solutions completely independently in the foreseeable future – but AI can speed up software development and improve quality. The algorithms relieve developers by supporting them in various tasks or even taking them over completely. 

Typical examples include writing simple code in a specific programming language, generating documentation and carrying out automated tests, which are often already integrated into standard AI tools. AI will soon be able to develop even simple web applications completely, as long as an experienced senior developer trained in AI programming accompanies the process.

“Classic” AI vs. generative AI – what’s the difference?

The use of AI in software development is by no means a new phenomenon. For example, machine learning models have been used since the 1990s to recognize patterns in code and identify potential sources of error before they lead to problems. These “traditional” AI systems can learn from data, recognize patterns and make predictions or support decisions on this basis. 

Generative AI takes software development one step further. Tools such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini or GitHub Copilot create content independently. They generate program codes based on natural language, write documentation or design software components. 

While “classic” AI can only be used in specific areas of software development, generative AI offers a much broader range of applications and has the potential to revolutionize the entire development process.

Areas of application: How can AI be used in software development?

The possible applications of tools such as ChatGPT in software development are diverse and constantly expanding. That is why we are only showing you a selection of the possible areas of application for AI in software development that we believe are currently important – without any claim to completeness.

• Requirements analysis: Extraction of specific requirements from conversations, texts or use cases
• Technical design: AI can now derive and completely define entire system architectures and solution designs from a set of requirements.
• Project bootstrapping: Automated setup of development environments and project structures, which saves considerable time
• Coding: AI helps with software development by creating code in specific programming languages based on a description or example
• Code review & refactoring: Identification of security gaps and bugs and improvement of the code structure without changing the functionality
• Testing: Generation of test cases and automated execution of tests
• Documentation: Automatic creation of technical documentation, API descriptions and user manuals
• Code explanation: AI breaks down complex code snippets and explains their functionality line by line

Potentials & advantages: What can artificial intelligence do?

By supporting AI in software development with the tasks just mentioned, there are several advantages for the development team itself that go far beyond “just” being faster and more efficient:

• Increased efficiency: developers can use AI to program software faster, as they spend less time on repetitive or simple coding tasks
• Quality improvement: AI detects errors early on during software development, ensuring quality but also eliminating unnecessary correction loops
• Cost savings: Faster development cycles and lower personnel costs save you money throughout the entire process
• Best practices: Less experienced developers learn from AI-generated solutions and expand their skillset
• Focus on innovation: Teams can concentrate on creative and strategic aspects of software development instead of spending time on routine tasks

Challenges & risks: What can’t artificial intelligence do?

However, this also raises the question of where the limits of AI lie, despite all its potential – at least for the time being. Because despite all the progress, there are a few limitations and challenges when using AI in software development that are not trivial and, above all, require in-depth specialist knowledge in order to achieve good results:

• Contextual understanding: AI tools usually do not yet fully understand the business context or the specific requirements of a company 
• Security concerns: AI-generated code may contain security vulnerabilities or not comply with security standards
• Legal and ethical issues: Copyright issues with AI-generated code have not yet been conclusively clarified
• Dependence: Over-reliance on AI tools can reduce expertise in the company in the long term
• Creativity and innovation: groundbreaking, innovative solutions still require human creativity and domain knowledge 

Blind trust in AI during software development without critical review can lead to problematic results that, in the worst case, are only discovered during productive operation. And what applies in principle also applies to the use of AI in software development: AI is only as good as the data it was trained with. 

Our comment: humans still play the central role with AI

We take a clear position on the use of AI in software development: AI is a powerful tool as an aid, but not a replacement for human expertise. In our view, AI tools shift the role of the developer. However, this does not mean that software developers are being done away with; on the contrary, they need all the more experience and expertise to use the AI results. 

Yes, AI can generate code and support development – but blind copy-pasting does not work. For software to actually meet your business objectives, the code must be understood, adapted and integrated into the overall context.

This still requires the developer as the interface between the business requirements and the technology. The final responsibility as well as reviewing, testing, plausibility checks, etc. remain in human hands. In this sense, AI tools are more of an important time-saver than a replacement.

This is also an important argument in favor of AI in software development when we consider the shortage of skilled workers. If each individual developer saves time, there is no need for a large team with many less experienced people to carry out routine tasks. Instead, depending on the project, a smaller and more compact team with experienced developers can work in a much more productive and focused way.

In our “AI in software development”  workshop, we will show you how you can develop software more efficiently using the latest AI tools or even create some of it automatically today. To ensure that you really get added value from the workshop, we will apply what you have learned directly to practical use cases.  

Revolution or evolution: is AI the future of software development?

We can confidently answer the initial question of whether coding will be dead in 2025 in the negative. But AI in software development will become a revolution that will overturn a great deal of the tried and tested. In terms of evolution, more and more new possibilities will quickly open up. Nevertheless, the software development of the future will be a symbiosis between human creativity and AI-supported efficiency.

For companies, this means that they should look for a balanced mix when choosing their partner for individual software development: technological expertise and a pioneering role with AI tools in software development on the one hand and a deep understanding of business processes and human communication on the other. This speeds up processes, reduces costs and increases quality without neglecting human expertise. 

What is undisputed, however, is a transformation of the developer role – away from the pure programmer and towards the orchestrator of AI-supported development processes. This change opens up new opportunities for more efficient and innovative software projects. Companies that recognize this development early on and take advantage of it will have a decisive competitive advantage.

Would you like to understand AI and find out more about how you can use tools like ChatGPT to advance software development in your company? Contact us for a no-obligation consultation. Let’s talk!