Veteran tech investor Keith Rabois says the product manager role in tech 'makes no sense' in the era of AI

Keith Rabois, a prominent tech investor and managing director at Khosla Ventures, has raised eyebrows with his bold assertion that the product manager (PM) role is becoming obsolete due to the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence. During his recent appearance on "Lenny's Podcast," Rabois suggested that the pace of AI innovation is rendering coordination-heavy positions and lengthy product roadmaps unnecessary. He pointed to the emergence of AI startups like Lovable, Cursor, and Replit, which offer 'vibe coding' tools. These platforms empower users to create websites and applications with simple prompts, significantly lowering the barriers to product development and diminishing the need for extensive, coordinated teams. Rabois emphasized that the capabilities of foundational AI models are evolving at a lightning pace, making traditional year-long roadmaps seem impractical. "There are tasks that were unthinkable last November that are now achievable with ease," he noted, highlighting the urgency for companies to adapt. In this shifting landscape, Rabois argues that the role of the product manager, which traditionally involves gathering customer feedback and aligning teams, is losing relevance. He believes that the future calls for a different skill set, akin to that of a CEO, focusing on the core question of what to build and why. This shift necessitates a fundamental rethink in how tech companies are organized. The most successful firms will be those that can swiftly identify and seize new opportunities, rather than being bogged down by layers of management. Rabois predicts that high-growth startups will need to act on new possibilities almost immediately, creating value for customers in real-time.