In 2026 usage, popularized in a public argument by Claude Code engineer Thariq Shihipar, the term names the bet that coding agents can make custom software reliable for companies whose core competency is not software. It is not vibe coding (ad-hoc prompting) and not a claim that inventing a new product becomes cheap or low-risk. The factory is the gated line in a repo — specs, implement, check, stop — not a product SKU. Older 'software factories' literature (software product lines and DSLs, mid-2000s) used the same metaphor for a different machine.