Klarna’s CEO says he vibe codes to save his engineers and product managers time
Summary
Klarna chief executive Sebastian Siemiatkowski told the Sourcery podcast he uses AI coding tools such as Cursor to build prototypes himself and to save his engineering and product teams time. Though he says he has been “vibe coding” informally for about 20 years, modern AI tools have massively sped up the process — turning meetings that produced prototypes in weeks into experiments that can return results in 20 minutes.
Siemiatkowski argues this lets him validate half-baked ideas without interrupting staff, present working examples to engineers, and iterate faster. The article also notes Klarna’s recent IPO surge and places the CEO among other executives embracing vibe coding, while acknowledging debate over whether heavy reliance on AI trivialises engineering tasks.
Key Points
- Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski uses AI tools like Cursor to prototype product ideas quickly.
- He says vibe coding lets him produce a working prototype in about 20 minutes, instead of waiting weeks for engineers.
- By testing ideas himself first, he reduces interruptions for engineers and product managers.
- Vibe coding has become widely adopted among tech leaders and increasingly appears on job listings as a desired skill.
- There is pushback in some quarters that heavy reliance on AI code generators could oversimplify engineering work.
Context and relevance
Vibe coding — using generative AI to write or assist with code — has moved from novelty to mainstream within 2025. Major tech executives and firms are experimenting with tools like Cursor and Bolt, and employers are starting to list vibe-coding experience in job specs. For product and engineering teams this affects workflows, hiring criteria and the speed of iteration.
Author’s note
Punchy: This is a straight-to-the-point snapshot of how a high-profile CEO is using AI to speed up product iteration and reduce team interruptions. If you care about workflows, hiring or the future of software craft, this matters.
Why should I read this?
Quick take: if you work with product, engineering or hiring, this is useful. It shows how execs are using AI to prototype faster and shield busy teams from noisy requests. It’s short, current and gives you a practical example of vibe coding in the wild — handy if you need to argue for or against adopting these tools in your organisation.