Paradigm Shift

Overview (Definition and Background)

A Paradigm Shift is a concept proposed by historian of science Thomas Kuhn. It refers to a phenomenon where the "obvious premises" and "values" that dominated society or an industry are fundamentally overturned into something entirely new.

In the IT industry, representative paradigm shifts include the transition from mainframes to PCs, from PCs to smartphones, and the current transition to "reasoning and autonomy by AI."

Paradigm Shifts in AI

The paradigm shift currently occurring in the world of Generative AI is primarily the transition from "dialogue (chat)" to "action (agents)."

* **Old Paradigm (up to 2023):** AI was a passive tool that "returned text or images" in response to human questions, and humans had to make the final judgments and execute actions.

* **New Paradigm (2024 onwards):** AI is evolving into "Autonomous Agents" that think for themselves, make plans, hit APIs, and execute code. We have entered an era where humans only need to set goals, and AI handles the process itself.

Business Implications

During a period of paradigm shift, past success stories and existing business models become obsolete. Thus, it is the greatest crisis for companies, but simultaneously the greatest opportunity.

Even in the field of system development, the development methodology itself is shifting dramatically. We are moving from a workflow where humans spend months writing code to a workflow where AI agents build prototypes in minutes, and humans only review and adjust them. Whether or not a company can adapt to this change (shift) will be the decisive factor determining its future survival.