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Evans: Claude Code is to software development what VisiCalc was to accounting

Benedict Evans · The most rational take on AI you’ll hear this year · May 31, 2026 · at 8:26

Independent tech analyst Benedict Evans compares the immediate productivity impact of AI coding tools to the historical introduction of the electronic spreadsheet.

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“Software developers are the accountancy of VisiCalc. Like, oh my God, this changes everything. Like before VisiCalc and after VisiCalc. Before, before Claude Code and after Claude Code.”

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