“Engineers are becoming sorcerers” | The future of software development with OpenAI’s Sherwin Wu
Source
Lenny Rachitsky
Author
Lenny Rachitsky
Date
Terms in this piece · Glossary
AI agent — An AI system that doesn't just answer once but works toward a goal in a loop — taking actions, reading the results, and deciding what to do next.
Why it matters
First-hand detail on how OpenAI's own API team runs agentic engineering at scale — parallel AI agentAn AI system that doesn't just answer once but works toward a goal in a loop — taking actions, reading the results, and deciding what to do next.Full definition → fleets, cutting code review from 15 to 2-3 minutes, and why building thin scaffolding around models is a losing bet as capabilities advance.
Key quotes
“95% of engineers use codecs.
100% of our PRs are reviewed by codecs.”
Sherwin Wu
“It literally feels like we're wizards
casting all these spells.”
Sherwin Wu
“So I think we might actually enter
into a golden age of B2B sass.”
Sherwin Wu
“The models will eat your scaffolding for breakfast.”
Sherwin Wu
“Make sure you're building for where the models are going
and not where they are today.”
Sherwin Wu
Chapters
00:00Introduction to Sherwin Wu
03:10AI's role in coding at OpenAI
06:53The future of software engineering with AI
12:26The stress of managing agents
15:07Codex and code review automation
19:29The changing role of engineering managers
24:14The one-person billion-dollar startup
31:40Management lessons
37:28Challenges and best practices in AI deployment
43:56Hot takes on AI and customer feedback
48:57Building for future AI capabilities
50:16Where models are headed in the next 18 months
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