3 days ago
JetBrains Aims Boosters At No-Code Web Development
Build a website, or web app. Simple, right? Although not many of us do. There are plenty of tools out there such as Wix, Squarespace, Weebly and of course WordPress itself. Then there are the GoDaddy-type, Duda and Jimdo services that aim to simplify as much as possible, but at the end of the day, they still present a technology proposition that many average users consider to be out of reach.
Each website building service has its own variety of themes and level of customizability, each has its own pricing structure and onward licensing considerations, each has different levels of 'robustness' (always important if a website or web app is intended to host e-commercce services)… and each has its own approach to more granular (but still important) considerations such as multi-lingual human language support.
Optimization & Formalization
In our web-evolved world of search engine optimization and formalized website indexing, the majority of brands and services on the web have been professionally presented. This makes any amateur approach to website or web app development today (something that we might have considered as hobbyist and cute back in the 1990s) now have a potentially negative impact on public perception.
As UK-based bespoke web design agency TeeGee Digital puts it, 'With a free site builder, Google will not be able to verify your website using webmaster tools. All of the leading search engines use complicated search algorithms to rank and compare websites. These can be very complicated to someone with little web design experience however, for a professional these insights can be very helpful in monitoring and improving your website.'
Integrated development environment and developer project platform company JetBrains thinks it has a way forward for users who want a no-code option for web development. Although the company is known for its deep tech, including the IntelliJ IDEA developer IDE and its Junie AI coding agent for software engineers, the company also produces Kineto, technology built to create, deploy and maintain ready-to-use websites and applications.
Beyond The Vibe Coding Groove
'Delivering even a simple to-do [web] app requires a hefty technology stack, a team of professionals and hours of testing and maintenance,' noted JetBrains product leader Andrew Zakonov and software engineering development team leader Vladimir Krasnotsvetov in a recent technical document. 'Website constructors increase web development speeds, but they still require user input to actually build a website… and while there are generative AI-generative platforms, these still need users to do some (vibe) coding.'
The pair claims Kineto is capable of building bridges between creative people, small businesses and no-code platforms, contributing to the emergence of a creative developer economy where people will create their own personal web applications.
'The key principle behind Kineto is no code for [users] at all. Our tools take care of the coding, so [users] can focus on being creative,' note Zakonov and Krasnotsvetov.
What is A Single-Value Web App?
JetBrains says that Kineto works well for creating what it calls small 'single value' applications. So that's unlikely to be the next NASDAQ portal or the next Netflix, this would more likely be useful for building your own custom-aligned fitness tracker app, for creating a blog, or some kind of personalized online planning tool. That single value app is presented with a user interface, an appropriate level of backend infrastructure provisioning (to handle computations, input/output of data, external API connects and so on) and a database service. All of which can be managed through a chat-based interface that works in natural language. Kineto takes about 20 minutes to build its first prototype once instructed, the user can then work out how they want to refine, extend and improve it.
'The first step with Kineto is to formulate the prompt with a detailed explanation of what your app should do and what it should look like. Every prompt is processed by Kineto and translated into appropriate functionality. You don't need to explain every single button or provide extensive references; Kineto will think of all that for you and then propose a suitable interface and design,' said Zakonov and Krasnotsvetov. 'It's okay if you don't know exactly what you want your app to look like. Kineto will ask you to choose a basic design template, color scheme and font in order to give it a solid starting point from which to build your app.'
Currently going through its early access period, JetBrains says aims to make this technology as mainstream as it can in the weeks and months ahead.
Competive Analysis: No-code Web Development
While this technology is still somewhat embryonic, it's tough to know how kind to be in terms of its potential, or how critical to be to its wider approach. Over and above the competing technologies mentioned at the start, it's worth remembering that smaller brands such as Adalo offers Apple iOS and Android mobile app development with a drag-and-drop interface.
Another example, the so-called 'decision canvas' offered by Sitecore Personalize is a tool that offers both low-code and no-code option. More aligned towards omnichannel customer data tools used in the appropriate business context (it's an enterprise tool, basically), this software still reaches downward (no disrepect intened) so non-technical business users can create intricate personalization paths for customers.
Bubble is also known for drag-and-drop development; the company is known as the 'full stack no-code app builder' and says it's the AI app development platform for 'founders and businesses' building serious, scalable apps through visual development for web and native mobile, all with no code required. Then there's Parabola for no-code data processing and automation (okay, more for workflows than a full website), plus Tilda for no-code website builds with design tools. This is a growing market.
Any one of those brands could be the next Twitter for AI web development, or we might see a major brand like SAP Build Apps (formerly SAP AppGyver) democratize itself and become more all-user accessible if the German softwarehaus sees fit to widen its roadmap.
This development will be interesting for some, but it may carry an air of 'citizen development' for others. While there's no point in fighting progress and the rise of citizen coders, citizen data analysts, citizen web developers and citizen X (i.e. everything, via low-code no-code and artificial intelligence) will continue to burgeon, there is clearly a good amount of AI working here.
That presence of AI services in place at the backend is warm and fuzzy at the outset; after all, this is kind of microwave age convenience for web apps (just 20 minutes and your app will be ready, caution: filling is hot) so what's not to like? Well, users should arguably be wise to think about AI-driven backend platforms in terms of their ability to deliver robust outputs without hallucinations. Humans in this particular loop appear to still be very much needed.
