May 3, 2026 · 1h 27m
AI shifts product roles toward high agency and malleable software
Why cultivating agency matters more than cultivating skills in the AI era | Max Schoening (Head of Product, Notion)
As AI automates routine tasks, the survival of product teams depends on building adaptable, general-purpose tools rather than specialized software.
- 1AI is pushing product managers and designers to adopt highly technical, high-agency approaches to development.
- 2Successful modern products rely on a tiny core of highly adaptable, general-purpose features.
- 3Malleable software tools will prevail over a predicted collapse of the software-as-a-service industry.
Don't miss
Max Schoening outlines why high agency matters more than traditional specialized skills in the age of AI.
The brief
AI is fundamentally reshaping product development, forcing designers and product managers to abandon rigid skill sets in favor of deep technical fluency and high personal agency.
Notion Head of Product Max Schoening argues that the future does not belong to highly specialized niche software, but rather to malleable, general-purpose tools that users can shape.
Instead of a total collapse of the software-as-a-service industry, successful products will rely on a tiny core of highly adaptable, powerful features that solve diverse problems.
Featuring
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