Why Speed Alone Won't Transform Software Delivery
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<h2 id="real-purpose">The Real Purpose of Delivery Speed</h2><p>In my younger days, I owned a Labrador-Whippet mix named Barclay. We were inseparable. Whether I was gardening, reading, or hiking through the woods, Barclay was always nearby—sniffing, lying on my legs, or racing ahead and doubling back to check on me. One of the greatest joys of having a dog is the companionship: you can talk to them when life gets tough, and they seem to understand.</p><figure style="margin:20px 0"><img src="https://cdn.thenewstack.io/media/2026/05/0806b5ec-vector-1765799632514-6e79d1038e1f-1024x557.avif" alt="Why Speed Alone Won't Transform Software Delivery" style="width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:8px" loading="lazy"><figcaption style="font-size:12px;color:#666;margin-top:5px">Source: thenewstack.io</figcaption></figure><p>Now imagine walking into an animal shelter hoping to adopt a dog for that very companionship, and the staff insists you take home a cheetah instead—because it's faster. That's exactly what I hear when organizations adopt AI with a narrow focus on speed. They miss the point entirely.</p><p>Speed has never been the ultimate objective in software delivery. The agile movement, for all its early promise, withered into a hollow shell obsessed with velocity. But why did we want to move faster in the first place? To get feedback sooner. When you discover that a shiny new feature doesn't resonate with users, you can abandon it before wasting more resources. Early feedback lets you pivot to better ideas, reducing waste and increasing value.</p><p>Nobody wants software that boasts the most features and changes at the fastest rate. When you cram in too many features and constantly churn, users grow frustrated. Microsoft Word, for instance, remains the most powerful word processor ever created, yet its market share has plummeted. Today, Google Docs—with far fewer features—commands 9.6% of the market compared to Word's 3.9% (source: 6sense). Why? Because Google focused on collaboration and ease of use, not on adding every possible function. Speed of feature delivery didn't matter; user value did.</p><h2 id="pitfalls">The Pitfalls of Pursuing Velocity</h2><p>If you ask a software leader why they're embracing AI, the most common answer is speed. But that answer reveals a deeper misunderstanding. Speed, without a clear purpose, leads to chaos. Teams that chase velocity often produce half-baked features, accumulate technical debt, and burn out their developers. Worse, they may ignore the true measure of success: whether users find the software valuable.</p><p>The agile movement originally emphasized feedback loops and adaptability, not simply delivering more in less time. Yet many organizations twisted it into a mandate for faster output. Now, AI is being sold as the next accelerant—a tool to crank out code more quickly. But if you're building the wrong thing at lightning speed, you're only failing faster.</p><p>Consider the cheetah analogy again. A cheetah can outrun a dog any day, but it's a lousy companion. It doesn't provide the loyalty, patience, or emotional connection that people seek from a pet. Similarly, AI that merely accelerates production without improving feedback or user understanding is a mismatch for the real goals of software delivery.</p><h2 id="ai-tool">AI as a Tool, Not a Solution</h2><p>Does that mean AI has no place in software development? Absolutely not. AI can assist with code generation, testing, bug detection, and even design suggestions. But these benefits are only realized when AI is deployed within a context that prioritizes learning and iteration. The real value of AI lies in its ability to <em>amplify human capabilities</em>, not replace the need for thoughtful planning and user research.</p><figure style="margin:20px 0"><img src="https://thenewstack.io/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/e54f7c3f-cropped-fc6cbbe0-steve-fenton-600x600.jpg" alt="Why Speed Alone Won't Transform Software Delivery" style="width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:8px" loading="lazy"><figcaption style="font-size:12px;color:#666;margin-top:5px">Source: thenewstack.io</figcaption></figure><p>For example, generative AI can help developers prototype ideas rapidly, which in turn allows for faster feedback from users. That's a virtuous cycle. But if the organization is solely focused on shipping features at breakneck speed, AI simply enables them to churn out more features that nobody asked for. The outcome is still waste—just more of it, faster.</p><p>Leaders who claim AI will revolutionize their delivery speed should first examine their track record. Very often, the same executives who championed agile transformations now tout AI as a silver bullet. But technology cannot solve a culture that values output over outcomes. Without a clear strategy for using feedback to drive decisions, AI becomes an expensive gimmick.</p><h2 id="market-shifts">Learning from Market Shifts</h2><p>The decline of Microsoft Word and the rise of Google Docs is a cautionary tale. Word's dominance once seemed unshakeable, yet it was toppled not by a faster product, but by a product that solved a different problem—collaboration. Google Docs made it easy for teams to work together in real time, from any browser, for free (or cheap). Users traded advanced features for simplicity and convenience.</p><p>This shift wasn't about pricing alone. If you think it was, you're likely working for an organization that still prioritizes straight-line speed, because you've stopped believing that creating software users actually <em>value</em> matters. The market rewards solutions that address real needs, not those that are delivered the fastest.</p><p>So before jumping on the AI bandwagon, ask yourself: Are we seeking speed to get feedback faster, or just to appear productive? The answer will determine whether AI becomes a transformative tool or yet another failed experiment. Because no amount of acceleration can compensate for building the wrong thing. And no cheetah will ever replace the companionship of a good dog.</p>