The conversation about AI replacing jobs is no longer limited to factory work or customer support. It is now reaching the core of the technology industry itself. The startup founder has openly stated that traditional software companies won’t survive the next few years if they can’t adapt, and her own company is already doing things very differently.
Tatyana Mamut, CEO and co-founder of Wayfound.ai, boldly claimed that the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model could be dead within five years. She believes that instead of relying on large teams and traditional tools, companies should move to AI agents or use tools like Claude that can handle most of the work.
Wayfound uses Claude AI to handle most of its coding work
Mammut’s view is more than just a theory. She told Business Insider that her company has already reduced its reliance on engineers in the usual sense. Rather than writing code line by line, her engineers act like managers overseeing the AI systems that do the actual work. These AI tools, particularly Claude Code, are central to how the company builds its products.
According to Mamut, this change has made the small team much more efficient. “Two of our engineers shipped more features at Amazon in 2017 than my team,” she said, referring to her previous role at Amazon Web Services where she managed a team of more than 30 engineers. Tasks that once took weeks can now be done much more quickly with the help of AI agents.
Changes at Wayfound began in 2024, when engineers began experimenting with tools like ChatGPT. As new platforms such as Claude Code, Vercel, and Cursor became available, the team tested them and gradually made them a core part of their workflow. Over time, AI systems took over tasks such as writing code, testing it, and even suggesting improvements.
This has also changed the way we work within the company. Instead of long planning cycles and multiple layers of management, the team now holds short meetings twice a week. During these sessions, we decide what needs to be built based on the customer’s needs. Engineers then pass these requirements to the AI tool, which generates the code and handles most of the execution.
Mammut says this approach eliminates much of the delay and complexity associated with large teams. There are fewer back-and-forth discussions and conflicts, and delivery times are significantly reduced. Engineers are also spending more time talking directly to customers, rather than sitting in front of a screen all day.
Interestingly, she believes that the role of the engineer itself is changing. At Wayfound, employees’ work is no longer limited to just coding. They are involved in product decisions, design discussions, and customer interactions. Mammut describes this evolving role as a “builder,” someone who takes on multiple responsibilities that were previously divided between teams.
At the same time, she warns that relying on AI without proper oversight could be counterproductive. She calls this risk “agent slop.” Poorly managed AI systems can lead to errors and inefficiencies. She says companies can’t just deploy AI and walk away. These systems require continuous monitoring and improvement to be useful.
Wayfound CEO says SaaS companies will disappear within five years
Beyond his own company, Mamut has strong views on the future of the SaaS industry. She argues that traditional software companies may struggle if they continue with their existing models. Companies like Salesforce, Atlassian, and Workday are already facing pressure as investors worry about the impact of AI.
Mammut believes these companies need to transform themselves into “agent” platforms – systems built around AI agents rather than fixed software tools. If they don’t, she warns, they “will be dead within five years.”
One of the reasons behind this potential change is cost. Companies are under pressure to cut costs and are cutting jobs to make room for AI investments. At the same time, companies are becoming hesitant to enter into long-term software contracts because they don’t know how their needs will change in an AI-driven environment.
Mammut says human engineers can stay safe from AI in three roles:
Despite its strong push for AI, Mammut does not believe humans will become irrelevant. People will continue to play a key role in managing AI systems, building customer relationships, and making strategic decisions, she says.
“People want to buy things from other people,” she said, adding that trust and relationships remain important even in an AI-first world.
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