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‘Coding May Disappear by 2026’: Elon Musk’s Claim Gains Momentum as Spotify Turns to AI
Spotify says its top engineers haven't written a single line of code since December 2025. Instead, almost all coding is now handled by its in-house Honk AI system, built on Anthropic's Cloud Code. And it's not just about writing code; the company says AI is also helping it roll out new features faster than ever before.
According to Elon Musk, coding might be a thing of the past by the end of 2026. This statement from the richest man in the world might be a little exaggerated, but the truth is already staring us in the face. Every tech company is trying to automate their workflow, and coding, of course, tops the list. Anthropic, Google, and Microsoft are already using AI for coding, and now the latest addition to the list is Spotify. According to the company, their best engineers haven't written a single line of code since December 2025, and the work is being done by their AI system, Honk.
In the fourth-quarter earnings call, Spotify co-CEO Gustav Söderström said the company's best engineers "haven't written a single line of code since December." This comment came as Spotify detailed how artificial intelligence is now deeply embedded in its development pipeline.
Gustav explained that at the heart of Spotify's AI-led transformation is an internal system called Honk AI. This AI tool is built on cloud code and integrated with Slack-based ChatOps to automate the build pipeline. This AI tool allows engineers to handle bug fixes, feature additions, and even code deployments in real time. Simply put, instead of manually typing code, Spotify engineers are now simply asking AI to do the work, and they simply review and approve the output.
Gustav explained how AI increases productivity, saying, "For example, a Spotify engineer can ask Claude to fix a bug or add a new feature to the iOS app while commuting through Slack on their cell phone in the morning.
