CIOs must reclassify AI coding assistants as core productivity expenses because GPU shortages, high model licensing fees, and infrastructure overheads keep pricing high. Vendors like Cursor, Claude Code, and Kiro have converged on similar pricing tiers driven by persistent infrastructure costs. Usage of AI coding assistants is rising among developers, with surveys showing widespread adoption and corporate encouragement. The 2025 Stack Overflow survey found 84% of respondents using or planning to use AI tools, based on over 49,000 responses from 177 countries. A GitHub survey reported over 97% of respondents had used AI coding tools at work.
With GPU shortages and high model costs keeping prices sticky, CIOs must treat vibe coding tools as a core productivity expense rather than a bargain add-on. As developers continue to adopt vibe coding tools to increase efficiency, CIOs may need to rethink their IT budgets. With vendors like Cursor, Claude Code, and Kiro converging on similar pricing tiers, mostly due to infrastructure costs remaining stubbornly high, the era of cheap AI coding assistants appears to be over, at least for now.
According to industry experts, this isn't a cartel-like pricing strategy but a reflection of real-world constraints. "It's a combination of factors such as strained GPU supply, high model licensing costs, and infrastructure overheads. To add to that, only a handful of firms have achieved mature enough capabilities in the space that actually help developers," said Dion Hinchcliffe, lead of the CIO practice at The Futurum Group.
The survey was based on over 49,000 responses received from 177 countries, covering 62 questions that focused on various technologies, including a new emphasis on AI agent tools and large language models (LLMs). A separate survey from last year, conducted by GitHub, showed that more than 97% of 2,000 respondents have used AI coding tools at work. That same survey found that 59% to 88% of respondents across all markets reported their companies were "actively encouraging" or "allowing" use of AI coding tools.
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