As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms software development, the role of quality assurance has never been more critical. With AI tools capable of generating thousands of lines of code in minutes, human oversight becomes the essential factor in ensuring business goals are met. Keneth Aponte, CEO of Ethics Code, brings years of cross-border QA team experience to help companies navigate this shifting technological landscape.
Shifting to AI-Powered Development
The software industry is changing fast. AI tools can now build what used to take developers weeks to create. “I’ve seen tools that will give you the full MVP in just 10 minutes,” Keneth explains. But this doesn’t mean development teams are becoming obsolete – their focus is simply shifting. “It’s definitely less work on lines of code and repetitive tasks, but it’s more work on the creative side of things because now you need to enhance the AI outcomes to accomplish business goals.” This transformation has put quality assurance front and center. Keneth says developers must adapt: “They need to talk about scenarios, test cases, they need to know everything a QA used to know to actually fix or work with what the AI did.”
Expanding the QA Role
Quality assurance isn’t just for testers anymore. Keneth sees it becoming everyone’s responsibility. “From top to bottom, everybody needs to be working on the QA industry,” he says. This includes business stakeholders who understand the real-world applications better than anyone. “We need to make the perfect blend between those skills and make the subject matter experts convert into QA and also have developers think more into QA.” For Keneth, this shift makes perfect sense. As AI handles more of the coding, humans need to focus on whether what’s being built actually solves the right problems correctly.
The rise of AI-generated code brings new compliance hurdles. Keneth worries about both security and ethics. “You need to not only have the application secure from the hacking perspective, but also trust what you’re getting from the AI,” he explains. “When I say ethics, I mean you need to know that what you’re getting from the AI is looking for the better good of all the end users.” While governments scramble to regulate AI, Kenneth remains optimistic: “There’s good leadership and goodwill all over the place. I believe AI is going to be great, even with compliance.”
Building Strong QA Teams
Keneth has spent years building quality assurance teams across borders. His experience taught him what matters most. “You won’t have a good QA team if they’re not subject matter experts in development,” he insists. “If they don’t know object orientation, if they’re not good in algorithms – you need to know the core grounds of development.” Technical knowledge comes first, then industry expertise. This foundation becomes even more vital as AI takes over routine coding tasks.
Many executives still see quality assurance as just another expense. Keneth strongly disagrees. “You need to think about what could be a disaster, what could paralyze your day-to-day activity,” he warns. “The other day when all the airlines were stuck for an entire day, that company lost millions of dollars from just a security breach.” Quality testing isn’t about slowing development – it’s insurance against catastrophic failures. “QA is an investment. You need to find the fine balance between productivity and quality,” Keneth says.
The Future of Quality Assurance
As AI continues reshaping software development, Keneth has a bold prediction about who will thrive. “Developers from the past are going to be the QA professionals of the future,” he says. “Today’s QA professionals will suffer the most if they don’t switch their mindset to a development mindset.” The most valuable skills are shifting. “QA professionals need to understand their industry more and what the end user is going to do,” Keneth explains. The technical knowledge still matters, but only when paired with deep business understanding.
At Ethics Code, Keneth puts this philosophy into practice. “We encourage our clients to involve the QA team from the conception of the project, from the very conception of the idea,” he says. “A tester is an advisor of the process.”
To get more insights from Keneth Aponte, connect with him on LinkedIn to keep the conversation going.
