When AI agents can generate numerous prototypes cheaply, the bottleneck shifts from creation to curation. The 'Editor' archetype, responsible for deciding which ideas to pursue, becomes critical for focusing scarce resources like market attention and team energy, regardless of whether their approach is empirical or gut-based.
Contrary to the traditional view of risk managers as bottlenecks, the speed of AI-driven work necessitates a forward-looking 'Risk Steward.' This role anticipates and clears potential derailments before they happen, ensuring projects maintain momentum. They become enablers of sustained speed, not inhibitors of it.
As AI makes building custom software cheap and easy, roles traditionally outside of product and engineering (e.g., finance, HR) will develop their own 'makers.' These individuals will prototype and build small, function-specific tools to solve their own problems, infiltrating product-style thinking throughout the entire organization.
AI is dissolving traditional job functions like 'engineer' or 'designer' into a new set of roles based on contribution style. Archetypes like 'Prototyper,' 'Builder,' and 'Sweeper' describe a person's disposition and approach to work. A healthy team will need a mix of these archetypes, regardless of members' formal titles.
While archetypes like 'Prototyper' and 'Builder' are useful for internal work, a complete organizational model must include externally-facing roles. Archetypes like the 'Scout' (gathering market signals) and 'Evangelist' (shaping perception) are responsible for interfacing with people and the market, a critical function that is often missing from product-focused frameworks.
The archetypes for building software—Prototyper, Builder, Sweeper, Grower, Maintainer—can be directly mapped to go-to-market functions. For sales, this looks like prototyping new pitches, building scalable playbooks, and maintaining a disciplined pipeline. This framework provides a novel way for revenue leaders to structure teams for innovation.