A Conversation with Li Yafei of ClackyAI: Vibe Coding Is the Starting Point; the Endgame Is a Fully Automated Software Delivery Factory

A Conversation with Li Yafei of ClackyAI: Vibe Coding Is the Starting Point; the Endgame Is a Fully Automated Software Delivery Factory

June 16, 2025

This episode of "Straight Talk" features Yafei Li, CEO of ClackyAI.

From the day he started his blog, Yafei Li adopted "Laziness is the driving force of human progress" as his personal slogan. He's been coding for 20 years, was once one of Sangfor's fastest-rising R&D managers, and was an early organizer of the Ruby Shenzhen community — where he met his first co-founder. In 2021, ZhenFund invested in ClackyAI (Zhijian Tiancheng) at the Pre-A stage.

In Yafei Li's view, AI programming is evolving from L2 (completion) toward L3 (understanding and planning), and eventually L4 (full autonomy). L4 remains distant; L3 is where we are now. ClackyAI is a Cloud Development Environment (CDE) built for L3 scenarios, with the goal of enabling product-savvy people to build professional code through AI.

As vibe coding becomes a trend, Yafei Li predicts programmers will undergo an identity shift — from writing every line of code themselves to becoming architects who make judgments and set direction.

ClackyAI can automatically submit PRs like Devin, and offers references and error correction like Cursor. But more crucially, it's built on a native Agent architecture combined with engineer-controllable task planning, producing code that's just right.

On the occasion of ClackyAI's official beta launch, we spoke with Yafei Li: What problem does it aim to solve? How is it different from existing tools? What does "make something people want" truly mean to him? As the way we write code is being rewritten, where will human-AI collaboration go?

ClackyAI: The Best Starting Point for Building Professional Products

01:15 ClackyAI is a cloud-based L3 Coding Studio 01:38 A good name is half the battle — "Clacky" comes from the sound of typing 02:14 The L3 stage of AI programming: a state where humans and AI each do half 04:11 What can ClackyAI do? How does it help users build products from 0 to 10?

Laziness Is the Driving Force of Human Progress 07:08 How to understand "laziness is the driving force of human progress"? 08:21 The goal: enabling product-savvy users to produce professional code 10:28 Vibe coding enables an identity shift for programmers: from writing every detail to becoming system architects 12:38 The endgame of human-machine collaboration: forming a software development pipeline

Building a Cloud-Based Programming Agent Product 14:13 Why build ClackyAI now? Coding is the last critical piece to move to the cloud 15:31 Exploring application scenarios for cloud programming technology; the rise of Agents brings an inflection point 16:29 As AI increasingly intervenes in code, building a cloud-native development environment for AI becomes essential 17:09 AI-automated development environment setup — globally, still the only one

Entrepreneurship Originates from a Non-Consensus Insight 19:03 The unchanging essence of entrepreneurship: "make something people want" 19:56 Entrepreneurship must return to first principles, originating from a non-consensus insight 20:44 Unlocking core human needs: personalized demand remains vastly underreleased, poised for explosive growth 22:00 The AI coding market won't be winner-take-all; application-layer products will flourish 22:37 In the context of human-AI collaboration, AI CDE will become the new consensus 23:54 How to think about migration costs? Step by step — first solve the build problem 25:37 ClackyAI's future: the endgame is a "software factory" 27:01 Developing "moats": a cloud development environment built for AI → data flywheel and brand advantage → efficient, full-chain solution

Don't Fear Code in the Future; Have Faith 27:39 Childhood curiosity about computer principles drives the pursuit of long-term value in entrepreneurship 29:01 Truly long-term value isn't about telling a pretty story 30:48 Currently, those who use AI programming better are often professional product people 34:37 Advice for young entrepreneurs: learn by doing, do by learning, continuously roll forward your capabilities 32:02 "AI First" is already the default rhythm within the team 34:06 Embed thinking into the product, embed it into the company

Executive Producers: Xin, Cindy, Neya Post-production: Yanaego

"Straight Talk" is a general business podcast produced by ZhenFund, where the ZhenFund investment team will share the latest hot topics and industry insights with leaders from various fields.

ZhenFund was founded in 2011 and is one of China's earliest angel investment institutions. Since its inception, ZhenFund has been actively seeking out the most outstanding entrepreneurial teams and era-defining investment opportunities in artificial intelligence, chips and semiconductors, robotics and hardware, healthcare, enterprise services, new energy, cross-border expansion, consumer lifestyle, and other sectors.

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