Is “Full-Stack Product Manager” the Next Big Role?
Yesterday, I had the chance to join a PM Huddle at GX Bank, featuring the Head of Product and Design from GX Bank and the Chief Product Officer of Grab. The session was part of Fusecon’s pilot series, and the main theme was clear: AI is reshaping product management at its core.
Zulhairul Ikram
The Imposter Syndrome of Product Management
Traditionally, product managers have always lived with a bit of imposter syndrome. We do a lot, such as writing PRDs, leading meetings, talking to designers and engineers. But often without deep expertise in every area. Books like Continuous Discovery Habits remind us that a product only truly works when the product trio (PM, designer, engineer) collaborates.
But with AI, that line is shifting. Tools like Lovable, Cursor, Claude Code, and others are giving product managers the ability to go far beyond our traditional scope. Wireframing without a designer, prototyping without waiting on engineers, generating A/B, even C/D/E test variations in minutes. Suddenly, the PM’s touchpoints are multiplying.
The Product Trio - Continuous Product Discovery - Illustrated by Maze
How Grab is Embracing AI Company-Wide
One of the most fascinating stories came from Grab’s CPO.
A 6-Week AI Sprint: In early 2024, Grab launched a six-week sprint where every team member paused their usual work to focus on R&D for AI and automation. During this sprint, teams identified pain points and repetitive tasks, explored available AI tools, tested them, and immediately integrated what worked into their workflows. The result? A major productivity boost across the company. It was a bold move: pausing business as usual but it highlighted the power of taking a company-wide step back to re-strategize around AI adoption.
Vibe Coding for Everyone: Grab also introduced company-wide coaching on “vibe coding” (using tools like Cursor, Lovable, and Claude Code). What’s unique is that it wasn’t limited to engineers. Even non-technical teams, like finance, were encouraged to learn. This created a ripple effect where people helping one another, sharing learnings, and discovering new ways to solve problems. One standout story was when the finance team successfully deployed a system using AI tools. Imagine that, an area once considered far from tech innovation, now empowered to build and automate solutions.
These experiments show how AI is flattening barriers across roles, giving everyone the chance to build, test, and create, no longer functioned solely for product or tech teams.
The Rise of the “Full-Stack PM”
So what does this mean for product managers?
It means the expectations are rising. PMs can’t just survive on PRDs, stakeholder meetings, and handoffs anymore. We’re being asked to:
Understand design through AI-assisted wireframes.
Prototype quickly with AI coding tools.
Run and analyze experiments without relying on long cycles.
Embrace automation in discovery and delivery.
The PM role is becoming more horizontal than vertical. It is now less about managing the trio, and more about participating across the trio.
Just as the full-stack developer emerged when engineers learned to handle end-to-end development, the full-stack product manager might be next: a PM who can strategize, design, prototype, test, and execute, powered by AI.
Illustration generated using Google Gemini AI
Final Thoughts
It’s both exciting and daunting. On one hand, AI makes us more capable than ever before. On the other, it raises the bar. We have to continuously upskill, adapt, and rethink what being a PM means.
Big thanks to the KL Product Community, GX Bank, and Grab for such an eye-opening session. And props to Fusecon for organizing this pilot series.