Foundations or vibes? Lessons learned from using AI in software engineering. Featuring Greg Foster, Graphite Co-Founder & CTO

Software engineering is being transformed by AI faster than any other domain. Unpacking how this transformation is playing out may offer a glimpse into the future

Greg Foster's journey into software engineering began in an unlikely place: a Nevada high school where he couldn't land a job at Starbucks. Instead of serving coffee, he taught himself software development.

Foster developed what he calls "a lifelong obsession with the craft of software engineering". That obsession evolved from building apps to building for other builders.

From Airbnb cofounding Graphite, where he now serves as CTO running what he calls "a dev tools team for the entire industry". Foster is now building the future of software development with Cursor.

Foster doesn't just have a front seat to watch how AI is changing software engineering - he gets to shape the change. We caught up and talked about the past, present and future of software engineering.

The takeaway? There is a world of difference between vibes and solid foundations for software engineering at scale.

Article published on Orchestrate all the Things: https://linkeddataorchestration.com/2026/01/29/foundations-or-vibes-lessons-learned-from-using-ai-in-software-engineering/