The rise of AI-powered developers, automation wars, and the JD Vance speech

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WORK IN PROGRESS

Wes Botman, Ian Piepenbrock

22 episodes

6 days ago

WORK IN PROGRESS is a raw, unfiltered look at the grind of building and scaling in tech and services. Hosted by founders Ian Piepenbrock and Wes Botman, it’s for those in the trenches—still learning, still failing, still pushing. Each episode dives into the reality of running a business: the wins, the losses, and the lessons earned through hard work and constant experimentation. If you’re scaling, building, or just obsessed with the process, WORK IN PROGRESS delivers insights from founders in it, day in and day out.

Entrepreneurship

Business

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All content for WORK IN PROGRESS is the property of Wes Botman, Ian Piepenbrock and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

Entrepreneurship

Business

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The rise of AI-powered developers, automation wars, and the JD Vance speech - Episode 17

WORK IN PROGRESS

50 minutes 37 seconds

8 months ago

The rise of AI-powered developers, automation wars, and the JD Vance speech - Episode 17

In this episode of WORK IN PROGRESS, we go deep on:

The software developer job collapse – AI is eating junior developer roles. Is the middle-class engineer disappearing?

AI-powered coding in Webflow and beyond – How Webflow Apps, GSAP, and AI-driven coding tools are changing the game.

Make vs. Zapier and the automation gap – Why most businesses aren't even ready for AI workflows.

Escaping Amsterdam – Why Ian is ditching city life, exploring Starlink internet, and avoiding overpriced restaurants.

Europe’s economic mess and JD Vance’s speech – Is EU leadership completely disconnected from reality?

CRO, efficiency, and scaling Noco – The latest on Noco’s CRO push, customer insights, and why simple beats complex.

Chapters

(0:00) Intro and chaotic energy

(1:00) Hiring struggles and scaling challenges

(4:20) The reality of running an agency vs. a product business

(6:45) Software developer job market is down 70% – what’s happening?

(10:30) AI is replacing junior devs, but senior devs are thriving

(14:15) No-code, low-code, and AI automation in development

(17:40) Automating workflows with Make and Zapier

(21:00) The gap between efficient and inefficient businesses

(25:30) The move to the countryside – Ian’s house project

(30:00) Ditching restaurants and cooking at home

(32:50) Hospitality industry complaints and cultural contrasts

(34:45) Amsterdam bans dancing in restaurants?

(36:10) JD Vance’s speech and European politics

(40:30) The shift in political alignments on war and peace

(43:15) Regulation, censorship, and the loss of common sense

(47:00) Noco’s CRO service and standardization

(49:30) Wrapping up – recruiter culture and closing thoughts

The WORK IN PROGRESS podcast hosted by Ian Piepenbrock and Wes Botman, two founders who are scaling and refining their businesses every day.Wes Botman is founder and CEO at ⁠⁠Eli5⁠⁠ (https://eli5.io), a software studio making complex ideas simple and accessible.Ian Piepenbrock is CEO at ⁠⁠Noco⁠⁠ (https://noco.agency), an agency dedicated to helping B2B SaaS and tech companies grow through strategic web design and branding.Watch/listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2cOqBRMjjgcXKSDDIboKrt?si=6990da66e09e4ef2Follow us on X for more raw insights, thoughts, and a good dose of founder reality:Wes: ⁠⁠@wesbotman⁠⁠ (https://x.com/wesbotman)Ian: ⁠⁠@lamswolprins (https://x.com/lamswolprins)