Microsoft asks non-developer employees to code using AI

Microsoft is experimenting internally with the use of artificial intelligence to enable employees beyond its engineering ranks to write code, signalling a shift in how ideas may move from concept to execution inside the company.

According to a report by The Verge, Microsoft is encouraging non-developer staff, including designers and project managers, to use Anthropic’s Claude Code, an AI-powered coding tool, to build early-stage prototypes. While the company has not made a formal announcement, the initiative suggests an effort to reduce dependence on engineering teams at the ideation stage and accelerate internal product development.

With AI systems now capable of generating functional code, employees without deep programming expertise are able to test concepts independently and share early builds for further refinement, rather than waiting for dedicated engineering resources.

The experiment is reportedly under way across several key Microsoft teams. Employees within the Experiences + Devices division, which oversees products such as Windows, Microsoft 365, Outlook, Teams, Bing, Edge and Surface, have been asked to install Claude Code. The company’s CoreAI group, led by former Meta engineering chief Jay Parikh, has also been testing the tool over recent months.

Microsoft has indicated that the initiative does not signal a replacement of software engineers or a lowering of technical standards. Engineers at the company continue to rely on AI tools such as GitHub Copilot and have now been asked to compare Copilot with Claude Code and provide feedback. GitHub Copilot remains Microsoft’s primary AI coding product for external customers.

Claude Code’s increasing internal use is notable given Microsoft’s longstanding partnership with OpenAI. While Microsoft has stated that OpenAI remains its primary partner for advanced AI models, it has also deepened ties with Anthropic in recent years. Microsoft allows Azure customers to access several Claude models and is among Anthropic’s largest cloud partners.

At present, Microsoft’s adoption of Claude Code appears to be a limited internal trial rather than a company-wide policy shift. However, by encouraging non-developer employees to experiment with AI-assisted coding, the company is examining how artificial intelligence could reshape not only how software is built, but who participates in the earliest stages of development.

The move comes as AI-generated code becomes increasingly common across the technology industry. In April 2025, Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella stated during a public conversation with Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg at the LlamaCon AI developer event that roughly 20 to 30 per cent of the code within Microsoft’s repositories and projects is already written by software.