Replit CEO Says AI Is Making Software Engineering More Cerebral and Enjoyable

Replit CEO Amjad Masad stated that AI agents are transforming software engineering into a more imaginative and enjoyable practice at his company. Masad noted that an inflection point occurred in 2025 when Anthropic released its Opus models, which significantly improved code-writing capabilities. Replit adapted by shifting from teaching coding to making it as simple as possible, building an AI agent that generates programs from plain-English requests, a process called vibe coding. Engineers now spend more time at the whiteboard and less time typing, with occasional breaks to send prompts to the AI agent. Masad described the shift as creating a culture where building is fun rather than intense. While some industry observers worry about AI replacing coding jobs, particularly after Meta laid off nearly 1,000 software engineers, others, including Microsoft executives, argue that such concerns are overblown.