{
  "id": 228532,
  "title": "Why Todoist says less AI can deliver more",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/06/why-todoist-says-less-ai-can-deliver-more",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-08-06T17:05:57.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The New Stack",
    "slug": "the-new-stack",
    "url": "https://thenewstack.io/doist-ai-automation-code/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Doist CTO Gonçalo Silva emphasizes that the pace of AI change has made it difficult to commit to one roadmap, model provider, or way of working. Rather than predicting which direction will win, Doist, the company behind Todoist and Twist, established three broad principles over a year ago: purposeful AI features, private and secure AI, and adaptability as models change.\n\nDoist has found that just because a feature is easy to build with AI doesn't mean it's worth shipping. The company is currently testing Automations, a service that turns natural-language requests into executable workflows. While AI interprets user intent, ordinary code executes the steps. However, Silva warns that AI is not predictable and consistent by design, which poses issues for consistent automation.\n\nKeeping AI models out of the execution path is advantageous as it's cheaper and faster to run code on a CPU compared to invoking expensive models repeatedly. This approach also reduces costs and speeds up execution.\n\nDoist's broader product philosophy is \"subtraction over addition,\" focusing on eliminating features that haven't proven their worth. Todoist, for instance, recently retired its Goals beta due to poor usage data and experience.\n\nThe company is cautious about adopting AI features, ensuring a quality bar is maintained. They test AI changes by checking behavior against multiple models and languages. This approach has also helped control inference costs, which became an issue when an early beta of Automations resulted in a significant bill during its initial rollout. Ultimately, Doist acknowledges the need for expert judgment in evaluating AI-generated features, even with the autonomy provided by AI tools.",
  "summary": "Doist CTO Gonçalo Silva doesn’t pretend to know where AI is headed. The pace of change has made it harder The post Why Todoist says less AI can deliver more appeared first on The New Stack .",
  "key_points": [
    "Doist prioritizes purposeful AI features over easy-to-build ones.",
    "Automations tests AI interpreting user intent with ordinary code execution.",
    "Doist follows \"subtraction over addition\" philosophy in product development."
  ],
  "editors_take": "By prioritizing purposeful, private, and adaptable AI features, Doist aims to maintain a quality bar and control costs, diverging from the trend of rapidly deploying AI-powered functionality.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}