SalesforceDevops.net 2025 Predictions
To say that tech has never moved so fast is now officially pedantic and annoying. But hey, it’s also true! The compounding impact of prior technology waves has only amplified the growth of the current AI wave. With AI agents and Virtual Employees (VEs) now taking over roles traditionally assigned to human workers, the technological transformation isn’t slowing down anytime soon.
Making year-end predictions has become harder than ever in this rapidly evolving landscape. Pity the poor pundit! Still, I’ve taken a crack at it. Here are my technology predictions for 2025:
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Low Code App Platforms Lose Favor
Low-code ecosystems like Salesforce Flow and Microsoft Power Platform have been a boon for business users, enabling them to create IT automation without writing a single line of code. But the era of new low-code platforms may be over. Why? Enter Large Language Models (LLMs) and automated code-generating tools like GitHub Copilot.
These new tools empower users to generate code—JavaScript, Python, even Salesforce Apex—with simple natural language prompts. Over time, AI agents and other tools will open code generation to even more business users. LLMs also shine at creating glue code, integrating multiple vendors’ APIs to achieve key functions. This capability addresses low-code’s Achilles’ heel: flexibility.
With DevOps practitioners now able to generate flexible, traditional code, release management teams have one less reason to tolerate low-code solutions in their CI/CD pipelines. Frequent updates and obscure XML definitions—hallmarks of low-code platforms—don’t help their case either. In short, low code isn’t disappearing, but its star is fading.
No Widespread Mass Firings Due to AI Agents
I’ve been vocal about AI agents and VEs as the future of work. But let’s get real: we’re not heading for mass corporate layoffs because of AI anytime soon. Consider Klarna’s infamous program with OpenAI, which led to the firing of 700 call center workers. That story caused shockwaves, with some even predicting the demise of Salesforce due to lost Service Cloud seats.
Fast-forward nine months: Salesforce’s Agentforce launch has flipped the script. Companies can now buy AI agents directly from Salesforce, eliminating the need for third-party overlays like OpenAI’s.
That said, the replacement of human jobs with AI won’t be a wholesale event—it will be a slow, insidious infiltration. Executives will control small cadres of VEs that gradually erode traditional roles. The workforce may not implode, but without careful planning, we’re looking at a quiet dystopia. For the full story, check out my essay The Quiet Erosion: How VE Economics is Reshaping the Future of Work.
A Major DevOps Vendor Markets a Virtual Employee
Silicon Valley’s fire is burning hotter than ever, fueled by the allure of a new Total Addressable Market: Virtual Employees. “Service as a Software”—where AI agents take on roles historically filled by skilled knowledge workers—is no longer a futuristic concept. It’s happening now. This shift opens up trillions of dollars in budgets for employee and consultant functions, far beyond the $350 billion global IT cloud market.
Marc Benioff has been one of the few tech leaders to articulate this vision openly, as demonstrated at last week’s Agentforce 2.0 debut. Following his lead, I predict that in 2025, a major DevOps vendor will launch an agentic system marketed as a Virtual Employee. By “major vendor,” I mean a public company, a conglomerate member, or an established industry leader.
We already see early-stage efforts in the Salesforce ecosystem, with startups like SRE.ai and Ressl.ai working on agentic solutions for Salesforce DevOps and administration. As these technologies mature, a prominent player will step up to deliver a global VE solution aimed squarely at human resource operating budgets.
The Peak Is Yet to Come
We haven’t hit that proverbial peak of expectations in the AI explosion yet. These predictions highlight the profound shifts underway in technology and the workplace. While some trends may spark excitement and others, concern, one thing’s for sure: 2025 will be a pivotal year in how we think about work, technology, and their intersection. Buckle up—it’s going to be quite the ride.
