美银-全球软件：Agentic AI深度探究-软件是否正在商品化？-Agentic AI：software ramifications deep dive;is software commoditised-20261020

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BofAGLOBALRESEARCH

BofASECURIES

GlobalSoftware

AgenticAl:softwareramificationsdeepdive

IndustryOverview

AgenticAldeepdive:issoftwarecommoditised?

AdvancesinfrontiermodelsandagenticAlhavereinforcedthenarrativethatsoftwarecreationisapproachingcommoditisation.Webelievethisviewoverstatestheimpact.

Thisnoteprovidesanin-depthanalysisofhowagenticAlisdisruptingthesoftware

sector.Weexamine1/thecurrentstateofagenticcoding,2/theimplicationsof

softwarecloningandincreasinglycapablefrontiermodels,and3/howsoftwarevendorsareadaptingtheirstrategiesandpricingmodels.4/WealsoreviewAlrevenue

disclosuresandmonetisationstrategies.

Agenticcoding:separatingthehypefromreality

Despiterapidprogressinfrontiermodelsandagenticcoding,webelievesoftware

vendorsremainadurableandcriticalpartofanytechnologystack.Ourviewisthatthe"everyonecannowbuildsoftware"narrativeiswellaheadofreality.Alhasmaterially

loweredthecostofprototyping,butmanydemonstrationsfailtocapturethechallengesassociatedwithscalability,reliability,security,integrationandongoingmaintenance.

Softwaremoat:evolving,butnotdisappearing

WebelieveagenticAlwillweakensomesoftwaremoatswhilereinforcingothers.UI/UXandstandardisedimplementationworkmaybecomeeasiertoautomate,buttrusted

data,industryexpertise,Alcontrol,partnerrelationshipsandbespokedeployment

capabilitiesshouldeitherremainrelevantorgainimportance.Networkeffectscouldalsostrengthenasmorecustomersandpartnersadddataandinsights.Inourview,the

deeperAlmovesintoenterpriseworkflows,themoreitdependsonprovensoftware,businessrulesandsystemsofrecord.

Pricingmodel&Alspendcannibalisation

Pricingremainsakeyconcern,astheshiftfromseat-basedtoconsumptionoroutcome-basedmodelsremainsuncertain,whileinferencecostsleavegross-margineconomicsanopenquestion.Overall,Enterprisesoftwarespendingisstillexpectedtogrowc.13%

2025-30CAGR,althoughAlintroducesuncertaintyoveragenticcannibalisation.Inthisnote,weexaminehowvaluecaptureandpricingmayevolve.

AIrevenuedisclosuresacrossEU/US

AlrevenuedisclosureremainsinconsistentacrossthesoftwaresectorandisgenerallymoredevelopedamongUSvendorsthanEuropeanpeers.CurrentdisclosuressuggestAlgenerallyaccountsforlowtomid-singledigitofgrouprevenues,withinabroadc.1-11%range.However,webelievereportedfiguresunderstatethetruecontribution,giventhatAlmonetisationisoftenembeddedwithinbundlesorcapturedthroughbroaderprice

increases.Medium-termtargetsremainscarce,althoughcompaniesprovidingthemexpectAltorepresentc.5-30%ofgrouprevenues.SeeExhibit19fordetails.

>>Employedbyanon-USaffiliateofBofASandisnotregistered/qualifiedasaresearchanalystundertheFINRArules.

Referto"OtherImportantDisclosures"forinformationoncertainBofASecuritiesentitiesthattakeresponsibilityfortheinformationhereininparticularjurisdictions.

BofASecuritiesdoesandseekstodobusinesswithissuerscoveredinitsresearch

reports.Asaresult,investorsshouldbeawarethatthefirmmayhaveaconflictof

interestthatcouldaffecttheobjectivityofthisreport.Investorsshouldconsiderthisreportasonlyasinglefactorinmakingtheirinvestmentdecision.

Refertoimportantdisclosuresonpage47to49.AnalystCertificationonpage44.Price

ObjectiveBasis/Riskonpage39.13030043

20October2026

Equity

Europe

Software

VictorCheng,CFA>>

ResearchAnalyst

MLI(UK)

+442079960272

victor.cheng②

FredericBoulan,CFA>>ResearchAnalyst

MLI(UK)

+442079957101

frederic.boulan@

TalLiani

ResearchAnalystBofAS

tal.liani@

+16468555107

Kojilkeda,CFA

ResearchAnalystBofAS

/p>

koji.ikeda@

TomerZilberman

ResearchAnalystBofAS

tomer.zilberman@

+16468553203

CarlaCourthial>>ResearchAnalyst

MLI(UK)

carla.courthial@

447761200059

AdityaBuddhavarapu,CFA>

ResearchAnalystMLI(UK)

+442079957318

aditya.buddhavarapu@

UI/UX=UserInterface/ExperienceSeeGlossaryonpages37-38

2GlobalSoftware|20October2026

ExecutiveSummaryTheriseofagenticcodinganditslimitations

Vibecodinghasquicklymovedbeyondexperimentationandisevolvingtobecomean

importantenterprisedevelopmentmodel.Inthelastfewmonths,betterfrontiermodelsandadvancesinreverseengineeringareloweringthebarrierstosoftwarecreation,butwebelieveenthusiasmremainswellaheadofreality.AIagentscanalreadygenerate

codeandacceleratedevelopment,yettheyremaindependentonexistingsoftwaretools,experiencedengineersandclearproductdirection.Withoutthesefoundations,they

oftenproducelower-qualityclonesorreplicateestablishedsolutionsratherthancreategenuinelydifferentiatedproducts.Coding,viewedinthiscontext,isthereforefarfrom“solved”.Ascapabilitiesimprove,weexpectsoftwarecompaniestoadaptandremaincriticalinturningrawmodeloutputintoenterprise-gradeproductsthatarereliable,

auditable,secureandcost-efficient.

Softwaremoatisevolving,notdisappearing

AcentralquestionforinvestorsiswhetherincumbentSaaSvendorscandefendtheirpositionsasAImodelprovidersmoveupthetechnologystackandlowerbarrierstosoftwarecreation.Inourview,moaterosionishighlyuneven.

AgenticAIcancommoditisemuchofthestandardisedworkflow,but

thelastmileremainsdifficultandexpensive.Deepintegration,processcomplexity,governanceandexceptionhandlingarewhereestablishedenterprisesoftwarevendorscontinuetodifferentiate.

Overall,webelievesoftwaremoatspersist,althoughtheirrelativeimportancechangesasagenticAIdevelops.Interfacequalityanduserfamiliarityshouldbecomeless

differentiatingasagentsnavigateapplicationsonusers’behalf.Trustedbusinessdata,embeddedindustryknowledgeandcontroloverAIactionscouldbecomestronger

defences.Establishedresellernetworksshouldremainvaluablethroughcustomer

relationshipsandimplementationexpertise,althoughroutineconfigurationworkmay

facepressure.Genuinenetworkeffects,whereadditionalusersorpartnersimprovetheproductforothers,alsoremaindefensibleandcouldstrengthenthroughsharedlearning.Weseecompetitiveadvantageshiftingtowardsassetsthataredifficulttoreplicate

beyondthesoftwarecodeitself.

Pricing:AIchallengesseat-basedmonetisation

Anotherkeyconcernfrominvestorswithwhomwe’vespokeniswhetherseat-based

pricingcansurvivetheshifttowardsAIagents,whichmayperformmoreworkwithoutincreasingusernumbers.Inouranalysis,weseesoftwareprovidersgenerallyrespondingwithconsumptionandoutcome-basedpricingmodels,chargingformeasuressuchas

tokens,actionsorresults.However,fastevolvingcapabilities,tokenefficienciesandcustomerexpectationsmeanpricingremainsexperimental,withcustomerresistancepotentiallyslowingthetransitionfromsubscriptionmodels.

Inourview,withoutclearerevidencethatsoftwareproviderscan

successfullytransitionpricingandmonetizeAIusage,thisconcernis

unlikelytofadeintheneartermandwillcontinuetoweighonsoftwaresentiment.

GlobalSoftware|20October20263

Basedonouranalysis,adoptionwithincustomerscurrentlyremainsunevenandislikelytobeakeyconstraintonnear-termvaluecreationforsoftwareproviders.Enterprises

areachievingproductivitygainsindiscrete,measurabletasks,butscalingthesebenefitsacrossend-to-endworkflowsrequiressignificantorganisationalchange.Consequently,manydeploymentsremainatthepilotorassistivestageratherthanbecoming

autonomous,enterprise-widesystems.Thispointstoamoregradualmonetisationcurveforsoftwareproviders.

BuyvsBuilddebate

InvestorsalsooftenquestionwhetherAIwillenablecompaniestobuildsoftware

internallyratherthanbuyitfromestablishedvendors.Wethinkthisplacestoomuchfocusontheinitialcodingprocess.Thespeedofinitialdevelopmentshouldnotbe

conflatedwiththefullcostofowningandoperatingsoftwareinproduction.In

enterprise,muchofthecostsitsoutsidethefirstbuild,e.g.integrationwithexistingsystems,workflowmanagement,accesscontrols,exceptionhandling,auditability,

complianceandongoingmaintenance.

Ourindustrycheckssuggestsomecompanieshavestruggledtoreplaceincumbentsoftwarein-house,citingcostandqualitychallenges.Manyhaverenewedexistingcontractsforanothercyclewhilecontinuingtodevelopinternalalternatives.

Lookingfromthisperspective,AImaycompresstheinitialsoftwaredevelopment

withoutremovingthecomplexityrequiredforreliabledeploymentandmaintenanceatscale.Insomecases,AImayevenexpandthegovernanceburdenbyintroducingnew

requirementsaroundmodeloversight,traceability,securityandpolicyenforcement.

Fastersoftwarecreationdoesnotnecessarilyresultinproportionallylowertotalcostofownership.

Assuch,webelievesoftwareproviderscanremainrelevantevenasAIimprovescodingproductivity.Theirvaluemayincreasinglylielessincodegenerationitselfandmoreinprovidingthesurroundingoperationalframeworkneededtorunsoftwaresafelyand

consistentlyacrosstheenterprise.

Enterprisesoftwaregrowth:a2.3ppAIcannibalisationpotential

Enterprisesoftwarespendingappearssetforhealthydouble-digitgrowthoverthenextfewyears,althoughAIcouldmateriallyredistributethatgrowth.Gartnerforecasts

applicationsoftwarespendinggrowingat13.2%annuallyover2025–2030.However,italsoestimatesthat$116bnofcumulativespendingwillshiftfromtraditionalfunctionalcategoriestowardscross-functionalagenticapplications,reducingthegrowthofthe

remainingsiloedmarketsto10.9%.Thisshouldnotnecessarilyrepresentanequivalentheadwindforlargevendorsabletoprovidebothcoreapplicationsandcross-enterpriseorchestration,astheycanrecapturespendingmovingbetweenthesecategories.We

thereforeseethegreatestriskfornarrowerprovidersconfinedtostandalonefunctions,whilebroaderplatformscouldpotentiallysustaingrowthclosertopre-cannibalisationmarketrates.

4GlobalSoftware|20October2026

xhibit1:nterprisesoftwaregrowth2.3pplowerifcannibalizationhappensImpactofcrossfunctionalcannibalizationonEnterpriseSoftware

12%

8%

4%

0%

16%25-30CAGRgrowth25-30CAGRgrowthwithAIcannibalisation

AnalyticPlatforms

CRMEmailand

Authoring

ContentServices

ERPOASPPMSCMEnterpriseSoftware

Total

Source:Gartner,BofAGlobalResearch

CRM=CustomerExperienceandRelationshipManagement,ERP=EnterpriseResourcePlanning,OAS=OtherApplicationsSoftware,PPM=ProjectandPortfolioManagement,SCM=SupplyChainManagement

BofAGLOBALRESEARCH

AIrevenuedisclosureacrosscompaniesremainsuneven

Currently,AIrevenuedisclosureremainsinconsistentacrossthesoftwaresectorandisgenerallymoredevelopedamongUSvendorsthanEuropeanpeers.Europeansoftwareproviderscurrentlyfocusmoreonusagemetricsratherthanrevenuecontribution.

RevenuedisclosuresacrossthetwogroupssuggestAIgenerallyaccountsforlowto

mid-singledigitofgrouprevenues,withinabroadc.1–11%range.However,webelievereportedfiguresunderstatethetruecontribution,giventhatAImonetisationisoftenembeddedwithinbundlesorcapturedthroughbroaderpriceincreases.Medium-termtargetsremainscarce,althoughcompaniesprovidingthemexpectAItorepresentc.5–30%ofgrouprevenues.SeeExhibit19fordetails.

WeexpectAIpricingmodelstoremainfluidinthenearterm,asrapidimprovementsinAIcapabilitiescontinuetoreshapebothcustomervalueandtheunderlyingunit

economics.

WhatmighthappenlongtermwhenagenticAIgetsmuchbetter?

Ourviewisthatthe"everyonecannowbuildsoftware"narrativeiswellaheadofrealityandislikelytoremainso,evenasfrontiermodels

becomemorecapable.AIhasmateriallyloweredthecostof

experimentationandprototyping,butmanydemonstrationsfailto

capturethechallengesassociatedwithscalability,reliability,security,integrationandongoingmaintenance.

GlobalSoftware|20October20265

IfAIeventuallyenableseveryonetodevelopsoftwaremoreefficiently,itisreasonabletoassumethatleadingsoftwarevendorswillbeamongthegreatestbeneficiaries,

leveragingthesametechnologiesatscaleandoftenwithgreaterspeedand

effectiveness.Admittedly,businessmodelswilllikelyevolve,withtraditionalseat-basedpricingincreasinglysupplementedbyhybridsubscriptionandconsumption-based

models.Ourbottomlineisthattheenterprisesoftwareindustryisunlikelytodisappear.Themoreimportantquestionishoweconomicvaluewillultimatelybedistributed:

whethersoftwarevendorscanretainthebenefitsofAI-drivenproductivitygains,or

whetheragrowingshareofcustomerspendmigratestowardsAIplatformsandmodelproviders.Webelievethelikelyoutcomeliesbetweentheseextremes:existingsoftwarevendorsshouldcapturepart,butnotall,ofthevaluecreated.However,ifAIexpandstheoverallmarket,thiscouldstillrepresentanetbenefitfortheindustry.

6GlobalSoftware|20October2026

StockImplications

SAP(Buy,€226):defensiveposition,butupsidetobedemonstrated

WeseeSAPaslessexposedtoAIdisintermediationvspeers,howeverithasyetto

demonstratemeaningfulAItractionandcommercialmomentum.SAPisamission

criticalERPacrossfinance,HR,supplychain,procurementandCX.Deepdatamodels,

embeddedcontrolsandregulatoryworkflowscreatehighswitchingcosts,making

genericagentspoorsubstitutes.AIisbeingembeddedinsidetransactionalprocesses

ratherthanlayeredattheedges.JouleCopilotandJouleStudiounderpinc.40domain

agentsandallowcustomerstocompose/customiseworkflows;monetisationblendsseatbasedandconsumptionbasedpricing.Commercialtractionisalreadyvisible:>2/3of

cloudordersincludeAI,90%ofthe50largestdealsincludedBDCorAI,c.60%ofcloudcustomersalreadyuseAI,and€2bnofBDCcontractsaresigned.ThemainriskisGenAIsubstitutionattheperiphery.Mitigatingfactors,regulatoryrequirements,mission

criticalcoverageandmaterialswitchingcoststiltthebalanceinSAP'sfavourwhileitbuildsanAIledupsellrunway.

Industrysoftware:strongmoat,butseat-basedpricingaconcern

WebelieveAIwillmateriallyreshapeCADsoftwareanduserinteraction,butfor

DassaultSystemes(Neutral,€25.6),Autodesk(Buy,$300)andNemetschek(Buy,€93),thekeymoatisnotsimplycreating3Dmodels,butmaintaininganaccuratedigitalrecordacrossdesign,testing,manufacturingandproductlife.AI-generatedgeometry

muststillsatisfyengineeringconstraints,undergosimulationandconnectwith

downstreamprocesses.However,thesesolutionsareparticularlyexposedtoseat-basedpricingmodeldisruptionbyAIastheirpricingmodelremainsmostlyseat-based.

SpecificallyforAECsoftware(AutodeskandNemetschek),AIadoptioninAEC

(whetheragenericAImodelorafirst-partytoolfromAECproviders)willlikelybeslowandgradual,askeyconsiderationsoftrustanddatagovernanceremainobstacles.

DiscussionswithindustryparticipantssuggestheadlessinterfacesandGenericAI

modelscouldbeusedforbounded,repetitiveworkflows;butfirstpartytoolsarelikelytocontinuetoexistfordeeperworkflows.

TravelIT:distributiondisruptionahead

InTravelIT,webelievepersonalagentscoulddurablyreshapehowtravellersdiscoverandcompareoptionsatthetopofthedistributionfunnel.WeexpectabiggerimpacttoairlinedistributionforAmadeus(Underperform,€53)andSabre(Buy,$2.5)

comparedtohoteldistributionHBXGroup(Buy,€12).

PersonalAIagentsmaystruggletobecomemainstreambookingchannels,given

suppliers’controloverinventory,limitedusertrustandprivacyconstraints.However,webelievetheycanstilldisruptthetopofthedistributionfunnelwithoutexecuting

transactions.

Communication-platform-as-a-service(CPaaS)

ForvendorslikeTwilio(Buy,$320),Sinch(Underperform,29SEK)andBandwidth(Neutral,$60),wethinkagentic-drivencommunication(SMS,phonecalls,etc.)will

drivehighervolumegrowthoverthelong-term.Wewouldtrackconsumer-facingagentadoption,andmessagingandvoicevolumetrendstovalidateourthesis.

AIdataplatformsanddatabases:AIreinforcesvalue

WebelieveAIreinforcesthestrategicimportanceofSnowflake(Buy,$470)and

MongoDB(Buy,$540)asagentsincreasethevalueofgovernedandsecuredenterprisedata.Also,Snowflake’sAIproductsprovideanadditionalmonetizationopportunityto

unlockmorebusinessintelligence.

GlobalSoftware|20October20267

Observabilitysoftware

WebelieveAIisgeneratinghighervolumesandmorecomplexworkloadsthatneedtobemonitoredwithAIproductsfromvendorslikeDatadog(Buy,$305),Dynatrace(Buy,$65),andElastic(Neutral,$108).

Softwaredevelopmenttools

WethinkthatAIischangingthesoftwaredevelopmentlifecycleandintroducinghighercomplexityandincreasedneedforsecurity,whichcouldmakesoftwaredevelopmentsoftwaretoolslikeFrog(Buy$110)andGitLab(Neutral,$54)morestrategic.

Deterministicroboticprocessautomation(RPA)software

ForvendorslikeUiPath(Underperform,$15),wethinkprobabilisticAIagents

introducequestionsaroundwhichgainshighershareoffutureworkloads.CustomersmayadoptUiPathforhigh-reliabilityandlowercostpertaskversusotherAIoptionstoday,butadvancesinAIcapabilitiesorlowerAIcostscouldeatintothevalue

propositionofRPAvendors.

Otherindividualsoftwarenames

•Temenos(Buy,CHF97):Weseeminimalnear-termdisplacementfromgeneral

purposeagents:banks'highcomplexity,highriskenvironmentsfavourco-innovationaroundAIratherthancorereplacement.WhereAImayappearfirstisinsurroundingworkflows(e.g.,drafting,casenotes,queryresolution),notinthetransactionalheartoftheplatform.

•Planisware(Buy,€31):Weseeaparticularrisklinkedtoitscommitmenttoseatbasedpricing,asbuyerstestconsumptionalignedmodelsandagenticusagegrows.Offsettingthis,theunifiedplatformacceleratesAIdeliveryandproductvelocity;

complexintegrationsandworkflowsareharderforgenerictoolstoreplace.

•TeamViewer(Buy,€9.5):Weseeaparticularrisklinkedtoitscommitmenttoseatbasedpricing,asagenticAIcapableofresolvingbasicITissuesincreasinglyerodesintothelower-endsegment.Thatsaid,thestrategytorepositionaroundabroaderdigitalworkplaceplatformiscredible,anchoredbyexpansionintoDigitalEmployeeExperience(DEX)andautomation.

8GlobalSoftware|20October2026

Viewpointsfromindustryparticipants

OurdiscussionswithvariousindustryexpertsandparticipantssuggestenterpriseAIadoptionremainsearlyandpragmatic.Mostexpecthybriddeployment,persistentimplementationcomplexity,durableincumbentadvantagesindataandworkflows,growingorchestrationimportance,evolvingpricingmodelsandonlygradualdisruption.

•EnterpriseAIremainsearlystage:customersareprogressingfrombroad

experimentationandproofofconceptstowardsnarrower,workflow-specificdeploymentswithclearerROI,ownershipandproductionfeasibility.

•Thedebateextendsbeyondbuyversusbuild:mostenterprisesarelikelyto

combineincumbentsoftware,cloudinfrastructure,externalimplementationsupportandcustomisedinternaldevelopment.

•Productiondeploymentremainsdifficult:security,governance,integration,

reliability,maintenanceandlongtailedgecasescreateasubstantialgapbetweencompellingprototypesandscaledproductionapplications.

•EnterpriseSaaS:someparticipantsexpectEnterprisesoftwaretofacelongertermpressure,notimmediatedisplacement:failedorcostlyinternalbuildsare

encouragingmanycustomerstorenewincumbentplatformswhiledevelopingalternativesoverseveralyears.

•Systemsofrecord:almostallparticipantsexpectsystemsofrecordtoretain

structuraladvantages:proprietarydata,workflowsemantics,embedded

integrations,enterprisecontrolsandswitchingcostscontinuetoanchorAIagentstoexistingsoftwareplatforms.

•Forwarddeployedengineeringisbecomingmainstream:softwarevendors,

infrastructureprovidersandconsultanciesincreasinglyembedtechnicalteamswithcustomerstocustomise,integrateandoperationaliseAIdeployments.

•AIpricingremainsunsettled:vendorsareexperimentingwithsubscriptions,usage,milestonesandoutcomes,butunpredictableconsumption,baselinemeasurementandattributioncontinuetoconstrainoutcome-basedadoption.

•Costsremainamaterialconstraint:scaledagentdeploymentscanbeexpensivetooperateandmaintain,increasingcustomerdemandforcostcaps,measurable

returnsandtightlydefinedusecases.

•Modelleveldifferentiationmayerode:declininginferencecosts,improvingopen-weightmodelsandmodelagnostictoolingcouldcommoditiseunderlyingLLMsandshiftvaluetowardsapplicationanddistributionlayers.

•Theorchestrationlayerisbecomingmoreimportant:durabledifferentiationmayincreasinglysitinagentharnesses,governance,workflowcontext,costcontrolsandcoordinationacrossmultipleapplications.

GlobalSoftware|20October20269

Agenticcoding:rapidlymaturing

Vibecodinghasrapidlyevolvedfromanexperimentalapproachintoa

potentialenterprisedevelopmentmodel.Asfrontiermodelsimprove

andadvancesinreverseengineeringlowerbarrierstosoftware

creation,moredevelopmentislikelytobecomeagentic.However,we

believethehyperemainswellaheadofreality.Currently,AI-builtclonesareoftenlowerquality,modelsstilldependonunderlyingsoftware

tools,andwithoutseniorengineers,AIagentstendtomimicratherthaninnovate.

Whatisagenticcoding?

AgenticcodingreferstotheuseofAItoolsthatdomorethansimplysuggestlinesof

code.Thesesystemscaninterpretinstructionsinnaturallanguage,generatesoftware,

runtests,fixerrorsandinsomecasescompletemulti-steptaskswithlimitedhuman

input.“Vibecoding”wastheearly,informalversionofthisidea:describingwhatyou

wantedinplainEnglishandlettingAIbuildsomethingquickly,oftenforexperimentationratherthanproductionuse.Whathaschangedoverthepast12–18monthsisthatthis

approachhasmovedwellbeyondhobbyistprojects.Itisnowevolvingintoabroader

enterprisesoftwaredevelopmentmodel,withmorestructure,moreoversightandclearerusecasesacrossthedevelopmentlifecycle.

So,iscoding“solved”?

Ourview:Agenticcodingmayremovetheneedtowritecode

manually,butfrontiermodelsstilldependonexistingsoftwaretoolsandengineeringexpertisetoprovidemeaningfuloutput.Withoutcleartechnicalandproductdirection,theyoftendefaulttoreplicating

establishedsolutionsratherthandevelopinggenuinelynovelanddifferentiatedproducts.

Asitstands,whileAIagentscanalreadyacceleratesoftwaredevelopmentsignificantly,buildingasuccessfulproductstillrequiresexperiencedengineeringtalent,product

judgmentanddeepdomainexpertise.Today'sAImodelsexcelatreplicating,adapting

anditeratingonestablisheddesignsandknownworkflows,butoftenstruggleto

generatetrulynovelconceptsbeyondwhattheyhavepreviouslylearnedorcan

reference.AIcapabilitieswillundoubtedlycontinuetoimprove,asthepaceofprogressoverthepastfewyearshasdemonstrated.However,wealsoexpectsoftwarecompaniestoadaptandevolvealongsidetheseadvancements.

Theriseofsoftwarecloningandreverseengineering

SoftwarecloninggainedvisibilityinearlyOctoberwithapopulartoolREA(Reverse

EngineerAnything),whichconnectsAIcodingagentstoestablishedsoftware-analysis

tools,includingGhidra,HopperandIDA.Thesetoolscanexaminethepackagedfilesusedtoinstallandrunsoftware,thenworkbackwardstounderstanditsunderlyinglogic

withoutseeingtheoriginalsourcecode.Ratherthanrecoveringthatcode,REAgivesAI

10GlobalSoftware|20October2026

agentsasimplifiedblueprintandsupportinginformationthattheycanusetorecreateandtestsimilarfunctionality.Itcaninvestigatetraditionalapplications,websitesandindividualfeatures,ratherthanrequiringanentireproducttoberebuilt.

Inourview,thiscouldreducethecostandeffortofreplicatingexistingfeatures,althoughitdoesnotyetprovethatcompletecommercial

softwareproductscanbeclonedreliably.

Developersdonotalwaysneedtoexamineaprogram’sunderlyingmachinecodetorecreatepartsofit.AIcodingtoolscanlearnfromwhatuserssee,howtheproductresponds,andinformationcontainedinmanuals,publicfileformatsandother

documentation.Developerscanthenusescreenshots,samplefilesandtestcasestocheckwhetherthenewproductproducessimilarresults.

Thismeansacompetitormaynotneedtocopyanentireapplicationtodisruptit.

Recreatingalimitednumberofwidelyusedfeaturescouldbeenoughtoserveless

demandingcustomersorputpressureonpricing.However,reproducingisolated

functionsisverydifferentfrommatchingthereliability,performanceandbreadthofamaturecommercialproduct.

Therearethreemainwaystorecreatesoftware:

•Copyingwhattheproductdoes:Developersstudythesoftware’sinterface,documentationandoutputs,thenuseAItobuildanalternativethatbehavesinasimilarway.Thenewproductdoesnotneedtoworkinthesamewayinternally,providedthatitproducescomparableresultsforusers.

•Workingbackwardsfromtheinstalledsoftware:Mostcommercialsoftwareisdistributedinaformdesignedforcomputersratherthanpeopletoread.Reverse-engineeringtoolstranslatepartsofitintoamoreunderstandableform,helpingAIidentifyhowcertainfeaturesmaywork.Thispro