9 Best-In-Class New Tools for Software Developers

2023, in particular, has seen a flurry of new dev tools. There are so many out there that most dev teams have little hope of staying on top of what’s coming to the surface.

So with 2024 upon us, I’m going to share some of the brightest new lights.

Here are 11 of the best tools for developers and software engineering teams that can help us do less busy-work, do more of what we enjoy (faster) and help our businesses gain lasting competitive advantages.

1. Stepsize AI: Effortless Development Reportin

Stepsize AI creates perfect reports for us.

Stepsize AI writes development reports better than humans can, is completely hands-free and creates stunning, actionable reports that engineering leaders, POs and Scrum Masters will love.

It works with Jira or Linear with more tools supported soon.

Stepsize AI automatically integrates with your issue tracker to create sprint reports with the perfect amount of context and detail.

The AI processes data from your issue tracker, forms connections between projects and tasks and uses this to surface the perfect level of context and commentary.

‍Key features

• Context-rich sprint reports
• Fewer status update meetings that could have been a Slack message
• Alignment without context-switching
• Surfaces delivery risks
• Works with Jira, Linear and soon many other issue trackers
• Security-first approach that will please your security leaders

My view – Gone are the days of having to build dashboards, copy and paste or screenshot charts from various tools and chasing people for updates (or being bothered for updates by the PO! These reports give the perfect level of detail without bombarding with too much info.

Learn more about Stepsize AI here. You can get your first sprint report for free.

2. Best for Writing Code: Cody AI

Cody AI is an advanced AI coding assistant for code implementation.

Cody AI represents the next step up from the likes of GitHub Copilot and TabNine in AI-assisted coding, going beyond traditional code suggestions. 

It deeply analyzes your codebase, documentation, and code graph, providing insightful responses to your queries. This tool not only suggests code but can automatically generate entire files using natural language processing. Its ability to search and analyze codebases with natural language prompts, provide precise code navigation, and even offer language translation for code makes it stand out in its class.

Key features

• Natural language codebase analysis
• Precise code navigation and translation
• Extensive and accurate AI code writing

My view – Cody AI is ideal for engineers managing large, complex codebases. It makes the process of getting familiar with codebases, or finding out how bits of it work, easier than ever before. The development process can genuinely be much faster with this tool. We love it.

Try Cody free

3. Best for Bug Tracking: Bugasura

Bugasura optimises the bug reporting and resolution processes.

Bugasura consolidates all bug reports in one place and uses AI to link similar issues. It reduces the time spent on bug detection and eliminates the hassle of handling duplicate reports.

Key features

• AI-driven bug report analysis
• Collaboration-friendly tracker links
• Contextual reporting add-ons

My view – Bugasura is great for any team that gets overwhelmed by bug reports from various sources. 

Check out Bugasura here – there’s a free-to-try option

4. Best for Code Documentation: Swimm

Swimm offers an AI-assisted solution for creating and maintaining internal code documentation directly within the IDE and CI tools.

Admittedly not a new tool per se, but the features of Swimm have grown and changed dramatically since the AI boom began.

Is writing docs a painstaking process? You need Swimm. Using AI, it assists in generating doc outlines and explanations for code, ensuring that documentation keeps pace with code changes. This tool helps overcome the challenge of outdated or missing documentation by syncing docs with code changes in real-time.

Key features

• AI-assisted creation of documentation outlines and explanations
• Real-time synchronisation of documents with code changes
• Integration with IDEs and CI tools for seamless documentation management

My view – Swimm simply takes away the irritations associated with writing and maintaining docs. It works with most popular IDEs, and integrates with a range of tools including GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Slack and more.

Discover more about Swimm – it’s free for one repo

4. Best for Managing Technical Debt: Grit.io

Grit.io automates technical debt management, including code migrations and dependency upgrades.

Currently in beta, Grit.io turns daunting tasks such as code migrations and dependency upgrades into straightforward, manageable processes.

Key features

• Technical debt task automation
• Efficient code migration and upgrade tools
• Streamlined management of legacy systems

My view – Nobody loves dealing with migrations, upgrades and tech debt… Do they? Grit.io is awesome if you tdeal with legacy systems or frequent code migrations. It significantly eases the process of staying up-to-date with technology updates.

Learn about Grit.io here – at the time of writing it’s free while in beta

5. Best for Unified Cloud Development: Wing

Wing is a programming language for cloud development, integrating infrastructure and runtime code.

Wing merges infrastructure and application code into a single, slick language. It compiles to both Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools like Terraform and JavaScript, so you can manage cloud resources as first-class entities in their code. This means less context switching and a much better developer experience.

Key features

• Unified programming model for infrastructure and code
• Local simulation for cloud applications
• Cloud-agnostic SDK supporting various cloud providers

My view – If you deal with cloud development workflows, try Wing out. If managing complex cloud apps is an everyday friction for you or your team, it’s especially useful.

Learn more about Wing

6. Best for Authentication: Descope

Descope integrates authentication, authorization, and identity management into customer-facing apps.

Descope is a a no-code platform for integrating various authentication methods into applications. It enhances user experience and security while eliminating identity silos. With Descope, developers can drag and drop to create authentication flows, including passwordless login, multi-factor authentication, identity federation, and fraud prevention. Its flexibility in managing user journeys, extensible user models, and strong protection against cyber threats make it a comprehensive tool for identity management.

Key features

• No-code workflows for creating authentication flows
• Support for passwordless login, MFA, and SSO
• Strong protection against password-based attacks and fraud

My view – Descope makes authentication processes pretty much painless, without compromising on security. We particularly like the user experience.

Explore Descope's capabilities - their basic tier is free

7. Best for Code Collaboration: Graphite

Graphite helps manage pull requests.

Graphite makes collaboration more efficient. It deals with things like small pull request creation, and handles merge conflicts. The integration with GitHub allows for easy two-way sync, ensuring that team members can collaborate securely, even if they're not all using Graphite. 

Key features

• Two-way GitHub sync for seamless collaboration
• Pull request management through an organized inbox
• Advanced CLI for efficient stacking and command simplification

My view – If you deal with frequent code reviews and merges, and often find things get delayed or blocked because of the usual issues that crop up around code reviews, then simply, you need this.

Learn more about Graphite – it has a free tier

8. Best for Unified API Integration: Alloy

Alloy offers a Unified API for streamlined integration across various commerce and accounting applications.

Alloy's Unified API simplifies the integration process with a single data schema, allowing developers to build once and implement across multiple applications. This tool addresses the challenge of dealing with different data schemas, endpoints, and nuances of each integration. Alloy provides a standardized data model, bi-directional sync capabilities, and efficient implementation across apps like Shopify, BigCommerce, and more.

Key features

• Standardised, single data model for multiple integrations
• Bi-directional sync with third-party platforms
• Robust infrastructure with built-in authentication and high rate limits

My view – Its ability to reduce the complexity of integrating multiple APIs is impressive. It’ll help improve product capabilities without the usual integration headaches.

Discover more about Alloy – it’s free to try up to 10 connections

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9. Best for Digital Experience Monitoring: Zipy

Zipy combines product analytics, error tracking, API performance monitoring, and session replay.

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It's an all-in-one platform that enhances the understanding of user interactions, identifies and resolves errors swiftly, and improves overall application performance. With features like real-time session replay, detailed product analytics, error debugging, and performance monitoring, Zipy empowers teams to proactively address issues and optimise the user experience.

Key features

• Unified platform for session replay, product analytics, and error tracking
• Detailed error debugging with advanced dev tools like stack traces and logs
• Real-time monitoring of user interactions and application performance

My view – Zipy’s a great new market entry for teams who want to deliver a superior digital experience.

Explore Zipy's platform – it’s free up to 1000 sessions/month