Taylor Otwell, creator of the Laravel PHP framework, advises developers to avoid complex code and stick to simpler, maintainable solutions. He emphasizes that while some problems are inherently complex, clever solutions that deviate from standard practices can lead to future issues, highlighting the importance of adhering to the framework's design principles. Laravel continues to gain popularity, being used by over 60% of PHP developers, but Otwell acknowledges challenges like compatibility with static analysis tools.