Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski on AI in Product Development

Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski has disclosed how he utilises artificial intelligence tools to accelerate the development of products and diminish the reliance on engineering teams. In a conversation on the Sourcery podcast, Siemiatkowski shared that AI coding assistants, such as Cursor, enable him to build functional prototypes within minutes, a task that used to require his engineers several weeks.

Siemiatkowski noted that he initially came from a business background and began to explore Cursor out of curiosity. He mentioned that the key change is now he uses a computer alongside AI, producing prototypes in just 20 minutes.

Understanding the Concept of Vibe Coding

The Klarna CEO termed this method as “vibe coding”, a phrase popularised by OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy which refers to using large language models for code generation. According to Siemiatkowski, this strategy not only saves time but also alleviates the burden on his staff by removing the need to test ideas that may not be viable. He explained that rather than bothering his engineers and product teams with a mix of good and bad ideas, he now conducts these tests independently.

The Evolution of Vibe Coding in Tech

Siemiatkowski has been experimenting with vibe coding for several years, noting a marked increase in both speed and efficiency with the latest AI technologies. This trend appears to be gaining momentum across the tech sector; for instance, Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently described his experience with vibe coding a webpage as “delightful”. Furthermore, Amazon is reported to be looking into adopting Cursor due to employee interest.

AI and Human Interaction in Customer Service

While the Klarna CEO has candidly addressed the potential for AI to disrupt white-collar jobs, his company continues to prioritise human customer service. As AI addresses 2.3 million customer queries for Klarna in 2024, the firm is also developing a support model through an app that enables users to connect with human representatives as necessary. Siemiatkowski even proposed that human interaction could evolve into a “VIP” service.