AI is changing the way we build software.

By 2028, the role of engineering leadership will look fundamentally different. AI is already reshaping team structures, shifting bottlenecks, and changing what it means to build software at scale.

We commissioned this survey with CTO Craft to understand how senior technology leaders see engineering roles and skills evolving by 2028.

We chose 2028 deliberately: it’s far enough beyond operational planning to require leadership thinking, but close enough to demand action now.

Here’s a summary of the report. Download your copy today to understand how you can apply the findings to your own organisation and be prepared for systemic change.

Everyone’s using AI

92% of survey respondents reported to be already using AI and seeing benefits. But the conversation among engineering leaders has moved well beyond adoption. The question is no longer whether to use AI, but how to lead teams through the transition responsibly.

Most do not expect AI to shrink their teams; they expect it to increase output. Productivity is increasing, which in turn drives demand for more products and software.

The bottleneck is shifting

For years, engineering speed has been the main constraint when it comes to software development.

AI has almost removed this constraint, so that now the bottlenecks are around idea discovery, review, governance, and alignment.

From augmentation to orchestration

Less experienced leaders see AI as augmenting existing roles and skills.

Those with more extensive AI experience have higher expectations of AI’s impact and envisage teams becoming AI orchestrators.

This means moving from single tools to multi-agent platforms, where deep expertise will be less important than a breadth of understanding. This shift from single AI tools to multi-agent platforms is one of the defining challenges in AI engineering leadership today.

The “human moat”

AI excels at execution: the “how”.

Humans remain responsible for the “why”.

As AI handles more of the execution layer, the distinctly human skills become the competitive differentiator: strategy, context, empathy, ethics, commercial judgement. For engineering leaders, these capabilities form the core of the job.

Inside the full report

Download the complete survey findings to explore:

• How productivity gains are expanding engineering demand, not reducing team size
• Where bottlenecks are shifting as AI removes traditional speed constraints across the software development lifecycle
• Why governance and organisational consistency are becoming the new engineering competitive advantage
• The new leadership roles and team structures expected to emerge by 2028

Join the engineering leaders already using the report to shape their 2026–2028 strategy.