Four in every five software development leaders believe that AI agents will become as essential to app development as traditional software tools, according to a report from Salesforce.
Developers have often been painted as wary of AI, but new research reveals developers are enthusiastic about the industry’s shift to AI agents
In the Asia-Pacific region, 70% of developers believe AI agents would accelerate application development, driving greater efficiency and productivity.
The report shares insights from more than 2,000 software development leaders, including 587 from the APAC region.
The survey was conducted from December 24, 2024 through February 3, 2025. APAC respondents represent Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand.
With agents powered by low-code/no-code tools, developers of all levels can now build and deploy agents.
Respondents believe these tools will help democratise and scale AI development for the better.
In the region, 86% of developers who are using agentic AI currently use low-code/no-code tools.
Four in every five (79%) say that low-code/no-code tools can help democratise AI development.
Also, 85% say that the use of low-code/no-code app development tools can help scale AI development.
Developers say updated infrastructure and more testing capabilities and skilling opportunities are critical as they transition to building and deploying AI agents.
Many developers in APAC (85%) believe their organisation needs to update their infrastructure to build/deploy AI agents.
Nearly half (46%) their data quality and accuracy isn’t sufficient for the successful development and implementation of agentic AI.
Similarly, nearly half (45%) say their testing processes aren’t fully prepared to build and deploy AI agents.
More than four in every five believe AI knowledge will soon be a baseline skill for their profession, but over half (51%) don’t feel their skillsets are fully prepared for the agentic era.
Respondents identified training on technical AI skills and redefining current roles as the most important areas for employers to provide support.
Gavin Barfield, VP and CTO of solutions at Salesforce in ASEAN, said that low-code/no-code tools allow developers of all skill levels to build and deploy agents, lowering barriers to entry and scaling AI development for the better.
AI agents also enable developers to shift their focus from manual coding and repetitive tasks to high-value problem-solving, architecture and strategic decision-making.
“This transition from output to business impact is being powered by solutions like Agentforce that make writing, reviewing and optimising code faster, easier and more efficient than ever before,” said Barfield.
The impact of AI agents on the industry is undeniable, and the best time for organisations to invest in empowering developers with the right skills, resources and infrastructure is right now,”he added.
