Steve Yegge floats 'Agentic TPMs' as the fastest path for coding agents into enterprises
Steve_Yegge · x · 2026-09-22
Steve Yegge proposes "Agentic TPMs" (Technical Program Manager agents), an idea he formed after chatting with Martha McKeen at CBA in Sydney, as the most direct way for coding agents to enter the enterprise and set the stage for true AI employees next year.
His argument:
- Builder agents are great but don't escape the SDLC — only devs use them; a few business people vibe-code SaaS, but non-engineers aren't using coding agents for their jobs yet.
- Operator agents — autonomous 24x7 queue-based agents handling internal/external customer issues — are valuable but narrowly scoped and need devs to set up and maintain.
- Neither type automatically goes viral internally or helps run the company.
His solution: agents taking on the TPM role, coordinating and driving technical programs, giving non-engineering teams an entry point to coding agents and spreading them across the enterprise. The post is the opening of a longer thread.
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