pair programming

Assess

Techniques

A development practice where two developers work together on the same code.

Why it's here

Placed in Assess: 3 article(s) of evidence from 2 source(s), led by research-stage coverage, with 2 in the last 30 days. Confidence 48%.

4Martin Fowler·7/31/2026research
AI Is Turning Developers into Conductors
Martin Fowler argues that AI has shifted the main bottleneck in software development from writing code to managing human attention and coordination. He describes developers increasingly orchestrating multiple AI agents in parallel, with their role resembling a conductor who provides context, evaluates output, and directs work across the system.
5The New Stack·7/19/2026research
AI Is Pushing Code Review Upstream
The article argues that traditional pull-request-based code review is becoming a poor fit for AI-assisted software development, where large amounts of code are generated quickly. It suggests teams should review intent, specs, and acceptance criteria earlier in the workflow rather than waiting until merge time.
5Martin Fowler·4/21/2026research
Thoughtworks Radar highlights AI, security, and code review
Thoughtworks published the 34th volume of its Technology Radar, which is dominated by AI-related topics but also revisits established practices such as pair programming, mutation testing, DORA metrics, and accessibility. The piece emphasizes security risks in agentic tools, especially prompt injection and broad permission access, and argues that durable code still needs regular human review.

Your vote is a weighted signal that nudges the radar — never a direct override.

HoldAssessConfidence32%

Business→ Steady
For BD, the main effect is on how the process and delivery commitment are described to customers: pair programming can be positioned as a practice that helps reduce late defects and speed internal feedback. But this is not yet a market shift large enough to force a sales-message pivot.
Developers▲ Rising
AI is pushing code review earlier in the workflow, so pair programming is likely to be used more often to catch issues and adjust direction while code is being written. Developers will rely less on late review cycles and need to collaborate more tightly during implementation rather than only after the fact.
Product✦ Emerging
With code review moving earlier, PMs have more reason to encourage pair programming on high-risk or fast-changing work because it can reduce late rework. PMs will need to treat pair programming as a work-organization option, not just a habit used by a few engineers.
Testers / QA→ Steady
As code review moves earlier, testers may see fewer basic defects late in the cycle, but they still need to stay close to developers to give fast feedback on edge cases and less visible behavior. Pair programming does not replace testing, but it can reduce the amount of simple defect finding after code has gone too far.

as of 7/20/2026

Educated guesses from the trend — you decide.