AI and the future of software engineering

Welcome to the latest edition of Access Granted Newsletter, where we cut through the noise to bring you the most relevant insights in Identity and security.

Today’s topic > AI and the future of software engineering. Earlier this week we celebrated Developer Day 2024, an Okta event for developers, by developers. (Missed it? You can still catch the sessions on demand.) One of the key themes that emerged from the day is how engineers are navigating AI — from solving challenges to mitigating risks. Here, we’ve gathered some helpful resources and perspectives on this topic.

Innovation, productivity, and AI-generated code. For software engineers, the appeal of AI tools is hard to resist: From generating code to debugging, AI is significantly speeding up the coding process and automating the most repetitive tasks of the job. A McKinsey study found that software developers can complete coding tasks up to twice as fast with generative AI. Developers are more productive, and they’re also more equipped to tackle new and complex challenges using AI to get up to speed on unfamiliar concepts.

Emerging risks of using AI tools. Benefits aside, AI is also introducing plenty of new threats, from inherent bias and diversity concerns to security considerations. According to Snyk’s 2023 AI Code Security report, 80% of developers are bypassing security policies to use AI. Not only can AI introduce errors into code, it can also put a company at risk of data exposure, copyright concerns, and overreliance on AI.

Balancing productivity and risk. Improved productivity and efficiency are worth striving for, but not at the expense of security and privacy. Protecting your products and maintaining customer trust are equally important. Before making a decision on which AI tools are best to use, and which ones aren’t, start by evaluating your risk tolerance and putting risk prevention strategies in place. Learn more about security considerations in the time of AI engineering.

Identity challenges for AI-powered applications. AI provides expansive opportunities to innovate upon existing apps and create new ones that were previously unthinkable. But with great power comes great responsibility. It’s up to developers to protect against Identity vulnerabilities like Sensitive Information Disclosure, Excessive Agency, and Insecure Plugin Design. This Auth0 blog post details more ways to defend your AI apps from Identity threats.?

The bottom line. AI is ubiquitous in software engineering: 96% of teams use AI coding tools, according to Snyk. Developers will need to stay vigilant in identifying vulnerabilities and avoid overreliance on AI to mitigate risk. To learn more about how to navigate Identity in the time of AI, catch over 35 talks and hands-on workshops led by Okta engineers and product leaders by tuning into Developer Day 2024 on demand.?

This newsletter was curated by Camille Rasmussen , Managing Editor at Okta.