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Goldman Sachs has taken a major step into the future by adding a new kind of team member to its ranks, not a person, but an artificial intelligence program named Devin. This AI software engineer was created by a tech startup called Cognition and is being tested to work alongside Goldman’s 12,000 human developers.
What makes Devin special is that it isn’t just a tool that assists with little tasks; it can complete complex jobs on its own, like writing full programs or updating old code, with minimal help from humans. Goldman’s tech chief, Marco Argenti, said Devin is basically like hiring a real employee who just happens to be made of code. At first, they plan to deploy hundreds of Devins, and potentially even thousands, depending on how useful it proves to be.
Devin gained attention last year after Cognition claimed it had built the world’s first AI software engineer. Now, Goldman Sachs has become the first big bank to bring it into real use, marking a big shift in how companies are starting to rely on more advanced AI.
This isn’t just about saving time. Other big companies like Microsoft and Salesforce have already said that AI is now writing a big chunk of their code. At Salesforce, for example, AI is handling up to half the workload in some areas. Goldman believes this kind of AI could make their tech teams two to four times more productive than before.
Of course, Devin won’t be working alone. Human developers will still be around to guide it, give instructions, and check its work, especially for repetitive or time-consuming tasks like switching code over to newer programming languages.
Cognition, the company behind Devin, has seen rapid growth since its launch in 2023. It’s now valued at nearly $4 billion and has investors like Peter Thiel backing it. Even though Goldman Sachs is using the tech, it doesn’t own any part of the company.
This big move into AI is stirring conversations on Wall Street and beyond about the future of jobs. Experts are warning that as AI becomes more capable, many roles, especially in banking and tech, could be replaced. Some estimates suggest banks might cut up to 200,000 jobs in the next few years as AI takes over more tasks.
Still, Goldman sees this as a shift toward what they’re calling a hybrid workforce, where humans and AI work side-by-side. Developers, for example, will need to learn how to clearly describe problems and give good instructions to AI like Devin, and then manage or supervise what the AI produces.
And while software development is one of the easiest areas to introduce this kind of AI, Goldman hints that many other roles may not be far behind. The message is clear: AI isn’t coming to the workplace; it’s already here, and it’s being hired.