AI is already making developers 50% more productive, says Zoho’s Sridhar Vembu

Artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming part of the software development process, and Zoho co-founder and chief scientist Sridhar Vembu believes its impact on developer productivity could be much larger than what companies are seeing today. In an interaction with CNBC-TV18, Vembu said AI could eventually make software developers four to five times more productive, with the potential to reach as much as 10 times as the technology becomes more capable. 

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He said productivity has already improved by about 30 to 50 per cent across the product-release lifecycle as businesses use AI at different stages of development. The comments come as Zoho steps up its AI efforts and expands into industry-specific software, signalling a shift in how software could be developed and used across different sectors.

AI gains could grow further

As per CNBC-TV18, Vembu expects the productivity gains from AI to increase as the technology improves. While developers are already seeing measurable benefits from AI-assisted workflows, he believes the bigger shift could come as these tools become capable of handling more parts of software development.

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Vembu's near-term estimate is a four-to-five-fold improvement in productivity, while the longer-term potential could be as high as 10 times.

Domain knowledge could become more important

The rise of AI could also change the role of software developers. As AI takes on more of the work involved in building software, Vembu expects greater demand for applications designed around specific industries and their requirements. 

For developers, this could mean that understanding a particular business or industry becomes increasingly important alongside technical skills.

Zoho expands its AI and SaaS portfolio

Vembu's comments come as Zoho has been expanding its AI capabilities. The company recently launched Zia Chat, an AI interface that lets employees search for information, understand business context and perform tasks across applications through a conversational interface.

Zoho has also entered vertical software-as-a-service, with offerings across seven sectors, including retail, automotive, banking and financial services, healthcare, education, real estate and restaurants.