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Low-Code Report Says AI Will Enhance, Not Replace DIY Dev Tools
Along with replacing software developers and possibly killing humanity, advanced AI is seen by many as a death knell for the do-it-yourself, low-code/no-code tooling industry, but a new report belies that notion.
Amid the current "vibe coding" frenzy -- where AI like GitHub Copilot is being used to create apps mostly by itself with human directions -- low-code/no-code vendor App Builder addressed this existential threat in a new "2025 App Development Trends Report" based on survey data, undertaken to explore how companies are currently using low-code and no-code tools in software development.
The low-code/no-code development space encompasses platforms that enable users to build applications with minimal or no traditional coding, using visual interfaces, wizards, drag-and-drop components, pre-built logic and so on. Designed to accelerate development and broaden access to software creation, these tools empower both professional developers and non-technical people (citizen developers or "ordinary business users") to build apps, automate workflows, and integrate systems quickly. As businesses push for digital transformation, low-code/no-code platforms are increasingly popular for enabling rapid prototyping, reducing development backlogs, and driving innovation across departments.
The rise of advanced AI has sparked existential fears in the low-code/no-code space, with concerns that AI could eventually bypass these platforms altogether by enabling users to build complex applications through simple natural language commands -- potentially rendering visual development tools obsolete.
The new App Builder report, however, finds that some three-quarters of respondents expect AI to enhance low-code tools, with most respondents seeing the two working together rather than AI replacing low-code, which is a view held by only 16%.
"Even as companies integrate AI into more parts of their business, 84% of tech leaders say that AI will not replace their reliance on low-code and no-code solutions," said App Builder. "Instead, more than three-quarters (76%) of them say that AI will make their existing tools more efficient."
[Click on image for larger view.] Enhance Not Extinguish (source: App Builder).
This data comes in just as GitHub Copilot is increasingly being used in Visual Studio 2022, Visual Studio Code and elsewhere to take over the typing drudgery that used to mark software development. Advanced AI tools can now basically create entire, simple apps based solely on human natural language spoken directions, typed instructions or even in response to provided imagery, such as a mockup of a desired app. This practice was last month dubbed "vibe coding" by computer scientist Andrej Karpathy, a co-founder of OpenAI and former AI leader at Tesla. That term has caught fire as AI is progressing to the point where it will soon be able to craft complex, interconnected applications according to human supervision.
Just as many pundits in the app-dev space claim that AI will help developers do their jobs, not replace those jobs, some people in the low-code/no-code industry have said much the same thing about dev tooling.
"Companies' use of low-code and no-code tools have steadily increased over the past decade -- and today these solutions are critical to how developers, designers, CIOs and others build scalable applications and effective development processes," said Jason Beres, SVP of Developer Tools at Infragistics, the parent company of App Builder. "Now, as AI converges with low-code and no-code, we'll see an entirely new paradigm emerge that will change how apps are built, who can build them and how fast it can happen."
App Builder's study, based on a survey conducted by research firm Dynata Solutions, is set to be officially published next week, but Visual Studio Magazine was provided with the report and accompanying news release beforehand. The research firm surveyed 300 full-time U.S. employees and managers across a range of industries and demographics December 2024-January 2025.
Other key report findings as presented by the company include:
- Nearly every tech leader is seeing time and money savings with low-code and no-code tools. 98% of tech leaders reported development time savings with low-code and no-code solutions -- with nearly four out of five companies (78%) saving up to 50% of development time. It's not just time saved, 62% of companies that use low-code and no-code tools have reduced software development costs. While more than half (67%) of tech leaders say they've reduced costs up to 30%, 10% of them say they've reduced costs by more than half.
[Click on image for larger view.] Time Savings (source: App Builder).
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Companies' reasons to use low-code/no-code tools have evolved. Many of the top reasons companies implemented low-code and no-code tools continue to be why they use them today, with improving developer productivity (37%) leading the list. But other reasons to use the tools have grown in importance since initial implementation, including allowing developers to focus on more strategic work (25% now vs. 22% initially), increasing end-user satisfaction (20% now vs. 17% initially) and decreasing manual errors (19% now vs. 15% initially).
[Click on image for larger view.] Reasons for Low-Code (source: App Builder).
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Custom application development is now a priority for companies. Generic applications don't cut it anymore; businesses need to evolve their apps to meet the unique needs of their business and customers. Nearly one-third of tech leaders (29%) say their top reason for using low-code and no-code tools is to increase flexibility to create custom apps that meet specific company needs.
[Click on image for larger view.] Productivity (source: App Builder).
The impact of advanced AI on low-code/no-code tooling, particularly with the rise of vibe coding, has also been a topic of discussion elsewhere lately, as evidenced by:
- "Harnessing AI in no-code/low-code platforms: transforming software development," a March 1 LinkedIn post by Antonio Lobusto, who said: "In conclusion, the fusion of AI with no-code/low-code platforms offers exciting possibilities for the future of software development. Balancing the benefits with the associated risks will be essential to fully realize the potential of this technological evolution."
- "Impact of AI Revolution on No-Code and Low-Code Platforms Market," another LinkedIn post, this one by Sanjeev Rattan, who on Feb. 2 said: "As AI continues to evolve, the potential for no-code and low-code platforms will only expand, driving a new era of digital innovation."
- "How Will AI Affect Low-Code/No-Code Development?" a Sept. 25, 2024 Forbes article written by Alessio Alionço that states: "AI will eventually reach the stage where it can manage whole processes and functions rather than just inserting chunks of new code. However, humans will still be needed for oversight, strategy and testing. Achieving the right balance of user-driven low-code/no-code development and automation through AI is what it will take to radically transform operations, improve user experiences, encourage professional advancement and boost enterprise growth."
As far as our own forays into vibe coding, see:
Likely Future: LCNC as a Shell for AI
Here's what ChatGPT thinks:
Low-code/no-code will:
- Become more like AI copilots and smart shells than traditional drag-and-drop builders
- Focus on business rules, process modeling, and approvals while letting AI write the code behind the scenes
- Serve as compliance-friendly UI layers for non-technical users to work with AI-built systems
Platforms that don't evolve? They'll become obsolete fast.
About the Author
David Ramel is an editor and writer at Converge 360.