Selling AI to Skeptical Developers
by Zevi Arnovitz on January 18, 2026
Zevi Arnovitz believes that AI tools fundamentally transform who can build products, collapsing traditional role boundaries and enabling non-technical people to become builders. His experience demonstrates that technical knowledge is no longer a prerequisite for creating functional applications.
As a non-technical PM with "zero technical background," Zevi discovered that AI coding tools gave him "superpowers" to build complete applications independently. What began as an experiment with simple AI tools like Bolt and Lovable evolved into a sophisticated workflow using Cursor with Claude Code, enabling him to create revenue-generating products without writing a single line of code himself.
Zevi approaches AI as a collaborative partner rather than just a tool. He personifies different AI models based on their strengths—Claude as "the perfect CTO" who's communicative yet opinionated, GPT as "the best coder" who solves difficult problems without explanation, and Gemini as "a crazy scientist" who excels at design despite a chaotic process. This mental model helps him leverage each model's strengths while mitigating weaknesses.
His workflow incorporates continuous improvement through reflection. When AI makes mistakes, he asks "what in your system prompt or tooling made you make this mistake?" and updates documentation accordingly. This creates a virtuous cycle where his tools become increasingly effective over time. He believes "updating documentation and tooling is one of the biggest hacks for productivity."
For product managers considering AI adoption, Zevi recommends starting small with user-friendly interfaces like ChatGPT projects before graduating to more technical tools. He acknowledges that in larger organizations, PMs shouldn't immediately start shipping complex features, but suggests that "contained UI projects" are feasible, especially if technical teammates review the final work.
Looking ahead, Zevi envisions a future where "titles are gonna collapse and responsibilities are gonna collapse and everyone's just gonna be building." He believes it's "the best time to be a junior" despite challenging job markets, as AI enables recent graduates to build startups independently in ways previously impossible.
For teams wanting to embrace this future, Zevi emphasizes that becoming "AI native" requires initial investment but pays enormous dividends: "Teams that are really sold on this and wanna take the time to work on their workflow... are gonna probably be a few years in the future and they're gonna look back at the few weeks they spent setting this up as the best time they spent."