Here’s an uncomfortable question: if AI got twice as good tomorrow, what would happen to your business?

As a software development agency, this isn’t theoretical for us. AI can already write code, and while it isn’t good enough to do what we do yet, it’s helping in many areas. If it gets much better, it’ll be able to do significantly more.

Rather than ignore this reality, we’re actively making our business defensive against AI disruption.

The Quality and Security Opportunity

We expect AI-written code will produce a flurry of low-quality, low-security applications that aren’t properly maintained long term. People will generate software quickly, but much of it will be fundamentally flawed in ways that aren’t immediately obvious.

This creates an opportunity. We’re leaning heavily into quality and security, which are already our strongest differentiators. In an AI-filled world, these attributes become even more valuable.

Building Defensible Moats

We’re focusing on things that are difficult for AI to obtain:

• Compliance certifications (ISO, DISP, E8, etc.)
• Deep client relationships and trust
• Industry-specific expertise and context

These things take years to achieve and represent verified expertise that can’t be generated instantly. In a world where anyone can produce software, proven quality standards become more valuable, not less.

The Speed Reality

But we can’t ignore the speed advantage of AI. Even if our quality and security are superior, will people wait longer and pay more when they can have an AI-generated version instantly?

I believe they will, but there’s clearly a limit. You won’t wait a year for software if you can have something 80% as good today. But you probably would wait a few weeks or months, especially if it’s much higher quality and more secure.

This means we must become faster, even if we’ll never be as fast as AI. We’re using AI safely ourselves and adjusting our processes to optimise for speed without compromising quality.

The Defensive Strategy

The key is identifying what becomes more valuable in an AI world, not what depreciates. Then optimise ruthlessly for those areas while using AI to accelerate everything else.

For us, that means doubling down on security and compliance while using AI to speed up routine development tasks. We’re not fighting AI; we’re positioning ourselves as the premium option in an AI-abundant world.

This Week’s Challenge

Examine your business through this lens:

• What would happen if AI got twice as good at the basics of what you do?
• What aspects of your service would become more valuable?
• What credentials, relationships, or expertise are difficult to replicate?
• How can you use AI to become faster while maintaining your differentiators?

The businesses that survive AI disruption won’t be the ones that ignore it. They’ll be the ones that use it strategically while building defensible moats around their highest-value activities.

Start building your defences now.