Codecrafters, a startup founded in 2022 by Paul Kuruvilla and Sarup Banskota, is making waves in the coding education sector. The platform provides an innovative, project-based approach to learning software development, with an emphasis on “Build Your Own X” projects. Codecrafters are super proud of their 300,000 people strong user base. With backing from influential technology leaders, it’s prepared to take that step to become the very best resource for any aspiring and early-career software engineer.

Their unique selling point besides some really great classes is that the platform only offers courses by membership (3-month, 12-month, and lifetime access). Codecrafters now offers ten courses over 250 exercises, building up to a complete learning experience. A year ago, the young startup announced a $1.8 million seed round. This spurred investments from high profile individuals including Instagram co-founder Mike Krieger and Dropbox co-founder Arash Ferdowsi, a reflection of the tech industry’s deep-seated faith in Codecrafters’ vision.

Paul Kuruvilla, Chief Technology Officer at Codecrafters, has a history rich with technology and leadership experience. Originally from Kerala and an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology in Ropar, he transitioned from mechanical engineering to computer science, becoming a self-taught coder. Prior to founding Codecrafters, Kuruvilla had worked for a couple of years in India as an Engineering Manager at Sequoia-backed Shuttl in Gurugram.

Kuruvilla and Banskota are fully remote employees. Kuruvilla’s home base is Cupertino, California while Banskota lives in San Francisco. This flexible, distributed global setup enables them to recruit, retain and leverage a readily available global talent base, as well as better serve their diverse user base. In just 6 months, India has grown to be the largest country for Codecrafters registrations. This is proof of the overwhelming hunger for high-quality coding education happening in the region.

Codecrafters’ “Build Your Own X” projects are central to its educational philosophy. These projects range from creating a BitTorrent client, Git, Redis, Docker, a shell, and a text editor. By participating in these dynamic, hands-on experiences, learners better develop a fundamental understanding of software development’s core principles.

"One thing we always tell people who come to our platform is that you should optimise for both breadth and depth. You need to build different kinds of software." - Paul Kuruvilla

Kuruvilla emphasizes the importance of versatility in software engineering, stating that Codecrafters is particularly well-suited for those early in their careers, with perhaps one or two years of job experience. The Coalition’s new platform is intended to be a valuable resource for all who seek to understand and shape the rapidly changing world of technology.

"We want to create the Duolingo equivalent for software engineering—an app that offers a unified experience, keeps you motivated, and connects you with a community of learners so you can see how you stack up against others." - Paul Kuruvilla

Codecrafters imagines itself not just as a simple coding platform, but as an entire learning ecosystem. The company’s mission is to foster a sense of community. We better prepare learners—particularly those in high-need communities—with the tools, resources and supports they need to thrive.

The introduction of AI into the world of software development has left many people thinking about what role programming will play in the future. Kuruvilla, though, is upbeat about the future of human coders. He thinks that for most advanced technology development, highly skilled programmers will always be in demand.

"We continuously test them against our courses, and we know that they don’t get very far. AI may perform well in the early stages, but as soon as the complexity reaches a certain level, it starts to get stuck," - Paul Kuruvilla

Kuruvilla, who leads Workera’s AI applications group, agrees that generative AI is most useful for focused, prescribed tasks. It can’t do innovation and creative thinking, particularly when it comes to large scale, complex systems.

"We build things that are inherently difficult—often the kinds of things AI doesn’t handle well yet, like databases, operating systems, and similar complex systems." - Paul Kuruvilla

Codecrafters gives particular attention to fields where the human touch will always be paramount. Through the experience of completing difficult projects, learners build the soft and hard skills that employers in today’s market demand.

"When we hire, we don’t require people to know specific languages. We say if you know the language we use, that’s a plus. But we care more about how versatile you are as an engineer." - Paul Kuruvilla

The firm prioritize adaptability and a general mastery of software engineering fundamentals in a language agnostic mindset over expertise in particular spoken tongues. We believe this new approach reflects the rapid pace of change in the tech industry. If you’re going to prevail, you need to be committed to ongoing education and nimbleness.

"I think the allure of being a software engineer remains much the same as it was five years ago — AI or not. Computer science is still in demand because it’s one of the highest-paying jobs." - Paul Kuruvilla

Even with the advent of AI, Kuruvilla is confident that the field of software engineering is still a fruitful choice for young professionals. The overwhelming demand for skilled programmers and the prospects for great compensation keep pulling people in.

"It’s one of the few fields where the barrier to practice is almost zero. It’s not like being a doctor, where you have to study books and then gain hands-on experience." - Paul Kuruvilla

It’s true, Kuruvilla notes, that software engineering has a very low barrier to entry. This will give aspiring programmers the opportunity to rapidly build real-world experience. This accessibility, along with the overwhelming demand for skilled developers, makes it an attractive career option to many.

"AI is not complete automation; it is partial automation," - Paul Kuruvilla

Kuruvilla emphasizes that AI is not a replacement for human programmers but rather a tool that can augment their capabilities. The future of software development, of which he is an LGBT advocate, will include humans and AIs collaborating in the pursuit of powerful new ideas.

"Maybe some parts of your job will become much easier and quicker to do, and you will just end up doing more. At the level these tools are at now, and where I think they will be in the short term, it’s always going to be a human-in-the-loop kind of thing." - Paul Kuruvilla

AI tools will take some of the grunt work out of the job, enabling programmers to tackle bigger, harder and more creative challenges. The human element will continue to be key in steering the technology and informing the evolution of the development process.

"So from a beginner’s perspective, if you don’t want to program at all, this is probably not a good fit. There are many other platforms that do that better — things like FreeCodeCamp come to mind." - Paul Kuruvilla

Codecrafters is not for absolute programming beginners. This platform is designed for users with no extensive coding experience. Most importantly, it allows them to deepen their own understanding and sharpen their skills.

"If you have got both breadth and depth covered, I think you are pretty future-proof. Anything new that comes along will likely be similar to something you’ve already seen, so it’s not too hard to pick up." - Paul Kuruvilla

Kuruvilla advises aspiring software engineers to focus on developing both a broad understanding of different technologies and a deep expertise in specific areas. This remarkable combination of breadth and depth will ultimately make them more adaptable and resilient with respect to the technological change that has become ubiquitous today.

"The reason we haven’t done this yet is because ours is a paid product, and based on our pricing, it’s not a great fit for students at the moment. But I think what we will do is launch a free program specifically for students," - Paul Kuruvilla

Codecrafters is looking into how to open up its platform to more students. The company is scheduled to release a free, more-student-oriented version. This program would go a long way toward connecting classroom education and hands-on practice with actual, real-world software development.