Does Code Quality Still Matter? It Depends on This — Max Kanat-Alexander, Capital One

Every senior engineer's answer is "it depends." Max Kanat-Alexander says what it actually depends on. Code quality always existed for two things: understanding a system and safely changing it. AI is making a new kind of software common: disposable software, with low consequences, few dependents and near-zero cost to replace or maintain. For that software, quality doesn't matter. For durable software it matters more than ever. He also shows how to make systems more disposable and how to make rigor cheap through standards, in-workflow tooling, easy testing and maximum strictness. Chapters: - 00:00 "It depends" — on what? - 01:14 Understanding and execution - 02:42 Why structure matters - 04:47 The two risks of every change - 06:56 Disposable software - 07:59 Durable software - 09:54 Making software more disposable - 12:05 Lowering the cost of rigor - 15:50 The answer Max Kanat-Alexander, Capital One: https://www.capitalone.com Join us in SF for the second annual AIE CODE summit: https://aie.codes our last flagship summit of 2026. Applications live now!