We’ve been here before.
Every time new tools make software creation more accessible, we see the same pattern. People create solutions without learning to code. Their businesses grow. Eventually, they need professionals to scale what they built.
It’s happening again with AI tools. And I can already see where this is going.
The Pattern
In the mid-90s, I started with Lotus 1-2-3, then Excel. People were solving real business problems with spreadsheets—no coding required. They’d build complex models, automate calculations, and run their operations on formulas and macros (some code required here…).
Then came FoxPro. Microsoft Access. People bought books like “Learn MS-Access in 21 Days” and built entire business systems. They’d show it off: “Look, I built this without writing any code.”
And they were right. They solved real problems. They built real businesses.
But then their businesses grew. The spreadsheet couldn’t handle the volume. The Access database hit its limits. The solution that worked for 10 users couldn’t scale to 100.
That’s when they called in the professionals.
The Cycle
This isn’t a failure. It’s a lifecycle.
Phase 1: Accessible tools democratize creation. People with ideas but no coding skills can build solutions. They prove the concept. They validate the need. They grow the business.
Phase 2: The business outgrows the tool. What worked at a small scale breaks at a larger scale. Performance degrades. Maintenance becomes impossible. The solution becomes the bottleneck.
Phase 3: Professionals rebuild for scale. Developers come in, understand the business logic embedded in the original solution, and architect a solution that can grow with the business.
This cycle has repeated with every wave of accessible tools. Spreadsheets. Desktop databases. Low-code platforms. No-code builders.
Now it’s AI tools.
What’s Different This Time
AI tools are more powerful than anything we’ve had before. You can go from natural language description to working software without dragging and dropping, without clicking through wizards, without any of the previous friction.
You describe what you need. The AI builds it.
That’s a bigger leap than spreadsheets to Access. That’s a fundamental shift in how software gets created.
But the pattern will hold. People will build amazing things. Their businesses will grow. And in a year or two, they’ll need professionals to scale what they’ve built.
The Graduation, Not the Failure
Here’s what we get wrong when we talk about this cycle: We frame it as a failure of the original solution.
“Oh, they built it with a spreadsheet, but it wasn’t real software.”
“They vibe-coded it, but eventually they needed real developers.”
That framing is backwards. The original solution wasn’t a failure. It was Phase 1. It was the creative explosion. It was the proof of concept that justified Phase 2.
The songwriter uses a drum machine to demo the parts. Drummers use a drum machine to streamline their work. That’s the drum machine doing exactly what it’s supposed to do: enable rapid iteration on the composition.
Then the studio drummer comes in to record the final version. That’s not replacing the songwriter. That’s scaling the vision.
What This Means for Vibe Solvers
If you’re using AI tools to build solutions right now, you’re not building “temporary patches” that will need to be “fixed” by professionals later.
You’re architecting Phase 1. You’re the composer. You’re proving the concept, validating the need, growing the business.
When professionals come in later to scale it, they’re not cleaning up your mess. They’re graduating your vision.
You handle the what and the why. They handle the how at scale.
That’s not a demotion. That’s a partnership.
The Prediction
In 12 to 24 months, we’ll see a wave of businesses that started with AI-generated solutions now needing professional developers to scale them.
Not because the AI solutions were bad. Because they were good enough to grow the business beyond what the original tool could handle.
That’s not a bug. That’s the pattern working exactly as it always has.
The accessible tool democratizes creation. The professional scales the success.
We’ve seen this movie before. We know how it ends.
The only question is: Are you building Phase 1, or are you waiting on the sidelines?
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