Introduction
Based on a Stack Overflow interview, almost 84% of developers use AI tools, but 46% of them don’t trust the quality. It’s a curious result, because many companies prefer to use AI-powered apps, low or no-code platforms to develop their applications.
What is better for a business owner who wants to optimize the processes and doesn’t want to waste extra money: to use AI for code generation or to prefer custom software development? Both of them have their pros and cons, so let’s discuss all the benefits of each approach, risks, our developers’ opinions, and consider any alternatives.
What is AI and Custom software development
For a better understanding of the topic, let’s review some general information, key differences, and limitations of both.
AI development is a solution for automatic code generation, which helps you deploy and manage it. The approach is based on machine learning, deep learning, natural language processing, computer vision, and other AI-driven technologies. AI-driven platforms let companies create websites, apps, or other types of projects quickly and cheaply.
Custom software development involves creating unique solutions, built based on business needs. It includes designing, developing, deploying, and supporting software to solve specific problems, optimize processes, or achieve the client’s unique business goals. The client is the only code owner.
| Feature | AI development | Custom software development |
|---|---|---|
| Speed | Faster code generation, but the quality and architecture need to be optimised, which can take additional time. | It can take more time, but the application develops based on the individual architecture and project logic |
| Expertise | General code knowledge | Based on the real code practices and understanding the sensitive parts |
| Flexibility | Limited by AI possibilities | Can be fully customized and adopted for the client’s requirements |
| Scalability | Restricted by AI possibilities | Can be scaled for unlimited time, as required |
| Cost | Cheaper at the beginning, but the expenses may increase later | Initial investment is higher, but the project pays off in the future and becomes cheap in maintenance |
As we see for now, the difference is significant. The most obvious answer is that if you need to create a simple project in a short time, AI development will be a great option for you. But if you prefer quality, security, and flexibility, custom development is better for you.
We could finish our research here if we didn’t know some additional important details. So, let’s move on to comparing the main benefits and limits to see the difference between AI development and Custom development more precisely.
AI-development: benefits, limits, and risks
Key Benefits of AI Development:
– Automation of simple workflows and processes
– Improvement through model retraining
– Can be scalable with growing datasets
– Efficiency in data processing, prediction, and content generation
Limitations and Risks of AI Development:
– Heavy dependence on the quality and volume of data
– Needs for monitoring, retraining, and code reviewing
– Potential risks tied to incorrect training
– The client isn’t the main owner of your code, and AI tools can generate the same for everyone
Custom software development: benefits, limits, and risks
Key Benefits of Custom Development:
– High reliability and control over features
– No need for large datasets
– Easy compliance with strict regulatory or security requirements
– High scalability and optimisation, as required
– The client is the only owner of the developed code and project
Limitations and risks of Custom Development:
– Less capable of reviewing unstructured or unpredictable scenarios
– Less suitable for intelligence-driven tasks like prediction or real-time analysis
AI development seems a cheaper and faster option. That is why businesses want to use AI tools. They want to save their time and money, and it’s okay, but is it the truth?
After reviewing the more detailed comparison, we can see that the differences are more than was expected. Based on it, we’d like to discuss some of the most sensitive and important moments, so you can make the right choice for you.
Custom Code Ownership
The custom code intellectual property benefits are often underestimated.
Building your own project using custom development, you become the only owner of your code, idea, and approach. You decide which features to prioritise, which integrations to implement, and how your product should evolve. Also, you can sign the NDA with the developer to avoid sharing the information with others.
Custom code has long-term benefits that AI tools cannot match. One of the most important is scalability. Applications built with custom code grow with your business needs, instead of adapting to their limitations.
In sum, owning your code makes your app as flexible, unique, and relevant for your company as possible.
How Addiction Can Affect Your Business
While AI development reduces setup time and upfront costs, it often destroys long-term scalability and control.
Addiction happens when businesses become reliant on AI tools. As a result, moving away can be expensive and destructive, with data migration issues, redesign costs, or even the loss of critical features.
This dependency also limits flexibility, leaving your roadmap dictated by the used tool rather than your business needs.
Instead, owning custom code gives you the freedom to choose where to host, what to implement, how, and what to integrate.
In sum, addiction can slow progress, increase costs, and ultimately jeopardise your long-term tech strategy planning.
Interview
AI tools can increase work speed by automating and optimising some manual work, analytic tasks, and help you find specific data.
Let’s ask our developer, Oleksandr, if he uses any AI tools and what he thinks about AI development.
A: “Do you use any AI tools during work as a developer?”
O: “Yes, but not for code generation, analytics, or any other tasks. I can ask ChatGPT some general questions, instead of searching for the answer manually in Google.”
A: “How can you evaluate the efficiency and quality of his help?”
O: “I estimate it like 5 or 10. If you’re looking for some specific information, it could take more time than if you search for it on your own. It feels like when someone who knows only theory tries to teach you without any practical experience.”
A: “What parts of your work does AI affect and how?”
O: “It can save some time to solve the task. As I mentioned, finding the needed information could be faster.”
A: “Did you work with AI-generated code, and is it possible to develop a project based only on AI?”
O: “In my opinion, AI can’t build a full project yet, because its business thinking isn’t developed. Even if you ask it to fix or improve something, there’s a big chance it’ll give you everything it’s given you before, from scratch.”
A: “If AI can’t develop all the projects, maybe it can work with specific tasks?”
O: “It’s difficult to answer precisely without any example. But in general, it can do any simple tasks and automate some manual work. But I don’t rely on solving any difficult questions. Some nuances and accommodations may arise during the work.”
What is an alternative?
As we see for now, choosing between AI development and custom software development is not only a technical approach. It’s about scalability, flexibility, cost, and reliability. We don’t have the answer to what is better because the question depends on the situation, but we suggest reviewing the alternative hybrid method.
It means that the core system logic, architecture are built through custom development, while AI modules add intelligence where needed.
Examples:
– AI-driven suggestions for systems like CRM, ERP, HRMS
– Simple manual process optimization
– Websites with intelligent bots, which can help users
– Simple content generation
– Security systems powered by automated video analysis
This approach provides both stability and intelligence, building scalable, future-proof digital ecosystems. That is why, in the TuneLab team, we prefer to use a hybrid method to optimize processes without compromising quality.
How to make the right choice
We prepared a short list of 5 steps, which help you to choose the best option for your business, based on your needs.
- What kind of tasks do you need to complete? (static or dynamic)
- Data availability to achieve the result
- Budget and timeline
- Security and regulatory constraints
- Long-term strategy and planning to scale the project
If you need a more detailed review of your project, we’re always open to helping and consulting with you. Just contact us, and we will come back to you soon.
Keywords: AI development, custom software development, AI VS custom development, AI development benefits, custom software development benefits, AI development risks, AI development limits, custom software risks, custom software limits, AI-driven, AI tools, code generation, manual work
