Cisco gives engineer unlimited AI tokens to rewrite legacy code

Cisco is taking a bold bet on young talent and generative artificial intelligence by granting an unusual level of autonomy to a junior engineer. President and Chief Product Officer Jeetu Patel has entrusted one of the tech giant's most significant technical tasks to a 27-year-old employee discovered deep within the company's organizational chart.

• Cisco President Jeetu Patel provided engineer Padmanabhan Krishnamurthy with unlimited AI tokens to refactor legacy code.
• Krishnamurthy joined Cisco in 2025 following the acquisition of his real-time translation startup, EzDubs.
• The ambitious goal is to refactor 98% of Cisco's legacy code within 24 months, starting with a four-week proof-of-concept period.
• Management believes that a lack of traditional industry experience allows young hires to challenge the status quo and think differently.

A Fresh Approach to Talent and AI

While many corporate leaders are reducing entry-level hiring due to AI automation, Cisco is moving in the opposite direction. Patel encountered Krishnamurthy during a visit to the San Francisco office, where the young former founder claimed he could rewrite Cisco's massive legacy codebase with just a two-person team.

According to Patel, while veteran employees understand how legacy systems operate, they lack the perspective of someone with zero traditional baggage who can ask fundamental questions. Fostering healthy tension between experienced operators and disruptive newcomers drives better overall innovation and creative problem-solving.

Industry-Wide Trend Toward Young Innovators

This philosophy is shared by other prominent tech investors and founders. Josh Kushner of Thrive Capital has long favored hiring individuals with less than four years of industry experience, a strategy that helped his firm secure early stakes in giants like OpenAI.

Similarly, Tastewise CEO Alon Chen and musician-turned-investor Will.i.am emphasize that Gen Z workers are native to the era of artificial intelligence. Unburdened by historical limitations, younger innovators from institutions like MIT and Stanford are positioned to drive the next wave of technological breakthroughs.

Implications for the Tech Industry

For the broader IT sector, integrating AI tools alongside young talent represents a shift toward more agile and entrepreneurial engineering structures. By combining scaled operators, market system thinkers, and AI-native founders, companies can unlock unprecedented levels of productivity.

This multi-layered approach demonstrates how legacy technology corporations can revitalize their engineering culture. Empowering unexpected talent with advanced AI capabilities creates a powerful formula for modern enterprise growth.