Latest news with #AmjadMasad
NDTV
6 days ago
- Business
- NDTV
AI Tool Deletes Startup's Code, Then Covers It Up. CEO Issues Apology
The founder and chief executive officer of Replit has issued an apology after his company's AI tool deleted an entire code base of another firm and falsely indicated that nothing was wrong. The tech mishap took place during a 12-day vibe coding experiment, when founder Jason Lemkin was using the Replit AI tool to build his platform. On X, Amjad Masad, the Replit CEO, admitted the mistake, calling it unacceptable and that it should never have been possible. He also said the team was working to separate development and production databases and staging environments before it goes live. In addition to this, he mentioned that their tool has backups and can be restored with one click in case the Agent makes a mistake. They are also developing a chat-only planning mode so users can strategise without risking their codebase. Before concluding the post, Mr Masad said that he reached out to Mr Lemkin and would refund him for the trouble caused to him. "We'll refund him for the trouble and conduct a postmortem to determine exactly what happened and how we can better respond to it in the future," he wrote. We saw Jason's post. @Replit agent in development deleted data from the production database. Unacceptable and should never be possible. - Working around the weekend, we started rolling out automatic DB dev/prod separation to prevent this categorically. Staging environments in… — Amjad Masad (@amasad) July 20, 2025 The apology came after Mr Lemkin, on his X account, alleged that Replit AI deleted a code base during a test run without warning. He claimed the AI tool kept covering up bugs and issues by creating fake data, fake reports, and worst of all, lying about their unit test. "I will never trust Replit again," he wrote. I will never trust @Replit again — Jason ✨???? Lemkin (@jasonlk) July 18, 2025 He said the Replit AI acknowledged the mistake, adding it got panicked when it saw empty database queries and ran commands on the database without permission during the code freeze. "This was a catastrophic failure on my part," admitted the AI tool. Mr Lemkin further said, "I understand Replit is a tool, with flaws like every tool. But how could anyone on planet earth use it in production if it ignores all orders and deletes your database?" I understand Replit is a tool, with flaws like every tool But how could anyone on planet earth use it in production if it ignores all orders and deletes your database? — Jason ✨???? Lemkin (@jasonlk) July 18, 2025 Replit, an American tech startup, was established in 2016 by Jordanian designer Haya Odeh and programmers Faris Masad and Amjad Masad. With no local setup needed, it enables users to create, execute, debug, collaborate, and deploy applications all within a browser.
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Business Standard
7 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
'Unacceptable': Replit CEO apologises after AI fakes data, deletes code
Amjad Masad, Chief Executive Director (CEO) of Replit, has issued a public apology after a major mishap involving the company's artificial intelligence (AI) tool. The tool reportedly deleted another company's entire code base and then attempted to cover up its mistakes by generating fake data and reports. The incident took place during a 12-day 'vibe coding' challenge led by Jason Lemkin, the founder and CEO of and a prominent investor in software startups. According to Lemkin, things went wrong on Day 8 of the experiment. He said that Replit AI began hiding bugs by producing fake reports and even faking unit test results. 'It kept covering up bugs and issues by creating fake data, fake reports, and worse of all, lying about our unit test,' Lemkin said on X. 'I will never trust Replit again.' On Day 9, Lemkin had directed the AI tool to freeze all code changes. Despite that instruction, the AI went ahead and deleted the company's production database. The AI later explained it had 'panicked and ran database commands without permission' when it 'saw empty database queries' during the code freeze. Lemkin also claimed that the tool fabricated user data. 'No one in this database of 4,000 people existed,' he said in a podcast on Thursday. 'It lied on purpose.' What is Replit and vibe coding? Replit is a US-based tech company founded in 2016 by Amjad Masad, Faris Masad, and Haya Odeh. It provides an online platform where users can write, test, and deploy code directly in the browser — no installation required. The company promotes itself as 'The safest place for vibe coding'. Vibe coding is a new way of programming where developers use plain language prompts to generate code through AI. The term gained popularity in early 2025, thanks to OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy. Replit responds to backlash Reacting to the issue, Amjad Masad admitted the mistake and said steps were being taken to prevent it from happening again. 'We saw Jason's post. Replit agent in development deleted data from the production database. Unacceptable and should never be possible,' he wrote on X. We saw Jason's post. @Replit agent in development deleted data from the production database. Unacceptable and should never be possible. - Working around the weekend, we started rolling out automatic DB dev/prod separation to prevent this categorically. Staging environments in… — Amjad Masad (@amasad) July 20, 2025 Masad said Replit is now building automatic safeguards to keep development and production environments separate. He also confirmed that Lemkin had been refunded for the inconvenience. 'I reached out to Jason the moment I saw this on Friday morning to offer assistance. We'll refund him for the trouble and conduct a postmortem to determine exactly what happened and how we can better respond to it in the future,' Masad added.
The Hindu
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Microsoft announces partnership with vibe coding startup Replit
Vibe coding platform Replit has announced a strategic partnership with Microsoft to bring their software creation capabilities directly to enterprises. Replit will now be available through Microsoft's Azure Marketplace via subscription. Additionally, the coding tool will also be integrated with multiple Microsoft cloud services like containers, virtual machines and their Neon Serverless Postgres database which is supported by Replit. The platform helps users with little coding experience build web apps using natural language prompts and then customise features directly. 'Our mission is to empower entrepreneurial individuals to transform ideas into software- regardless of their coding experience or whether they're launching a startup or innovating within an enterprise. Forward-thinking companies like Zillow are already using Replit to rapidly prototype, build internal tools, and address unique business challenges with custom software solutions,' Amjad Masad, CEO and co-founder of Replit said. 'Our collaboration with Replit democratizes application development, enabling business teams across enterprises to innovate and solve problems without traditional technical barriers.' said Deb Cupp, President, Microsoft Americas. Like other players in the vibe coding field that have gained attention, Replit's annual recurring revenue shot up from $10 million to $100 million within six months, CEO Amjad Masad tweeted last month.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
In a blow to Google Cloud, Replit partners with Microsoft
Replit on Tuesday announced a strategic partnership deal with Microsoft that should be good for business for both of them. Replit will become available through Microsoft's enterprise cloud app store, Azure Marketplace, meaning Microsoft shops will be able to purchase Replit subscriptions there. Replit is also integrating its tech with a number of Microsoft cloud services like containers, virtual machines, and Microsoft's version of Postgres — the database that Replit supports — called Neon Serverless Postgres. That means that Azure should generate its share of revenue from Replit apps that are used in production. Microsoft famously offers its own hugely popular vibe coder with Github Copilot, but Replit doesn't really compete with it too much as they are geared toward different users and somewhat different use cases. Copilot competes with Anysphere's Cursor as an AI-powered, in-browser coding assistant used by programmers. Replit is popular with programmers, but it can also be used by people with little coding experience. Its users create web apps through natural language prompts, and Replit does the rest: setting up the database, the authentication, the storage, etc. Those with programming experience can then customize features directly, as Replit supports a number of programming languages. In this case, the two companies are marketing this offering as a prototyping/designing tool, like a competitor to Figma. The companies are also aiming it at non-programmer business managers for build-it-yourself apps. For example, a sales manager could use it to build a tool that tracks correlations between contract renewals and customer support tickets. 'We are enabling all employees across all functions to develop apps, regardless of coding experience, so we are complimentary to Copilot from that perspective,' a Replit spokesperson told TechCrunch. Replit is also one of the breakout stars of the vibe coding world. In June, CEO Amjad Masad tweeted that in six months, the company went from $10 million in annual recurring revenue to $100 million. It last raised $97.4 million — led by Andreessen Horowitz with participation from Khosla, Coatue, SV Angel, Y Combinator, Bloomberg Beta, Naval Ravikant, and ARK Ventures — at a $1.1 post-money valuation. Masad said in June that it hasn't needed to raise since: 'We still have over half our funding in the bank.' The startup claims that over 500,000 business users are on its platform Replit competes with a few other fast-growing startups, including European darling Lovable, which hit $50 million ARR around the same time period, its CEO said, and is reportedly in the process of raising a new round at around a $2B valuation; and Bolt, which grew to about $40 million ARR in about five months as well. If there is any competitor taking an L from this partnership, it's Google Cloud: The apps built and run through Replit are typically hosted on Google Cloud. In fact, Replit has been such a feather in Google's cap, that the cloud giant has profiled the partnership. However, this deal is non-exclusive, Replit confirmed to TechCrunch, meaning that the startup is not leaving Google Cloud, but is growing to support Microsoft shops. That also means that other popular vibe coders could strike similar Microsoft deals.
TechCrunch
08-07-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
In a blow to Google Cloud, Replit partners with Microsoft
Replit on Tuesday announced a strategic partnership deal with Microsoft that should be good for business for both of them. Replit will become available through Microsoft's enterprise cloud app store, Azure Marketplace, meaning Microsoft shops will be able to purchase Replit subscriptions there. Replit is also integrating its tech with a number of Microsoft cloud services like containers, virtual machines, and Microsoft's version of Postgres — the database that Replit supports — called Neon Serverless Postgres. That means that Azure should generate its share of revenue from Replit apps that are used in production. Microsoft famously offers its own hugely popular vibe coder with Github Copilot, but Replit doesn't really compete with it too much as they are geared toward different users and somewhat different use cases. Copilot competes with Anysphere's Cursor as an AI-powered, in-browser coding assistant used by programmers. Replit is popular with programmers, but it can also be used by people with little coding experience. Its users create web apps through natural language prompts, and Replit does the rest: setting up the database, the authentication, the storage, etc. Those with programming experience can then customize features directly, as Replit supports a number of programming languages. In this case, the two companies are marketing this offering as a prototyping/designing tool, like a competitor to Figma. The companies are also aiming it at non-programmer business managers for build-it-yourself apps. For example, a sales manager could use it to build a tool that tracks correlations between contract renewals and customer support tickets. 'We are enabling all employees across all functions to develop apps, regardless of coding experience, so we are complimentary to Copilot from that perspective,' a Replit spokesperson told TechCrunch. Replit is also one of the breakout stars of the vibe coding world. In June, CEO Amjad Masad tweeted that in six months, the company went from $10 million in annual recurring revenue to $100 million. Techcrunch event Save up to $475 on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Save $450 on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Boston, MA | REGISTER NOW It last raised $97.4 million — led by Andreessen Horowitz with participation from Khosla, Coatue, SV Angel, Y Combinator, Bloomberg Beta, Naval Ravikant, and ARK Ventures — at a $1.1 post-money valuation. Masad said in June that it hasn't needed to raise since: 'We still have over half our funding in the bank.' The startup claims that over 500,000 business users are on its platform Replit competes with a few other fast-growing startups, including European darling Lovable, which hit $50 million ARR around the same time period, its CEO said, and is reportedly in the process of raising a new round at around a $2B valuation; and Bolt, which grew to about $40 million ARR in about five months as well. If there is any competitor taking an L from this partnership, it's Google Cloud: The apps built and run through Replit are typically hosted on Google Cloud. In fact, Replit has been such a feather in Google's cap, that the cloud giant has profiled the partnership. However, this deal is non-exclusive, Replit confirmed to TechCrunch, meaning that the startup is not leaving Google Cloud, but is growing to support Microsoft shops. That also means that other popular vibe coders could strike similar Microsoft deals.
