Published: 2026-03-04 02:04
For some time now I have been trying to understand the feeling behind this Big Emphasize the “AI that writes all the code”.
Not “AI helps you autocomplete a function.” Not “AI interprets the stack trace.” I mean the whole story:
“We won’t need software engineers anymore.”
And I couldn’t articulate what bothered me about it – until it clicked.
Software engineers can do magic with words
Good software engineers have this weird, unfair advantage: We can do whatever we want using computers. Language.
Sure, it’s a weird language. It looks ancient. Sometimes it is hostile. Sometimes it’s beautiful.
But still—if you know what you’re doing—you can sit down with a keyboard and change the words to:
- a product
- a workflow
- an automated business process
- A system that makes money while you sleep
- A tool that saves a team thousands of hours
That is real power. This is leverage.
And when people say “AI will replace software engineers,” I don’t think that’s always a technological prediction.
I think sometimes it’s a reaction to that leverage.
Part of it is jealousy (yes, I said it)
There’s a special kind of frustration that comes from watching someone do something you can’t do — even if you understand it. in theory.
Non-engineers can absolutely build things. They may be brilliant. They can run companies. They can design. They can sell. They can lead.
But software engineering has this unique “I can design a machine to do what I want” quality.
and if you No That’s the skill, the difference looks like this:
- You depend on someone else for execution
- You can’t go at the pace you want
- You have to ask for change instead of just making change
So yes… I think sometimes there is reason for jealousy. Not petty jealousy. more like:
“Why do you do it?” They Be a person who can talk to a machine?”
But the real driver is simple: bottlenecks
Even if you remove the psychology completely, there is still a very practical reason for the “change engineers” story:
Software engineers are a hindrance.
Not because we are lazy. Not because we are gatekeepers. Because building real systems is hard, and the number of people who can do it reliably is limited.
If you’re a company and you want to grow, software becomes the multiplier. And only engineers wear multipliers.
So of course everyone is trying to reduce that barrier. No doubt investors liked the idea. No doubt the founders liked the idea. Of course the managers liked the idea.
“AI writes code” is basically the dream of infinite leverage without human interference.
What happens next: The gap gets bigger, not smaller
Here’s the part I think a lot of people forget:
Even if AI gets dramatically better at generating code, that doesn’t automatically level the playing field.
It can also be widened.
Because the best software engineers will use AI the same way a master carpenter uses power tools:
- fast iterations
- Less time spent on boilerplate
- Spent more time on architecture and tradeoffs
- more shots on target
- More finished projects
Production increases, but Taste Still matters. The decision still matters. The ability to debug reality still matters.
And people who are passionate about crafts – who love to create – are going to use these tools to terrific effect.
Meanwhile, those who are just in it for the paycheck (or who never really learned the basics) are most at risk. Not because AI is “replacing engineers”, but because AI makes it easier to figure out who can’t actually run a thing.
The outcome I’m betting on
I think the world is about to realize something boring and true:
Software engineering is not going anywhere.
We’re simply changing what “doing work” looks like.
Jobs shift upward. Tools get better. Expectations increase. Basic ability increases.
And then you get this awkward moment where people look around and go:
“Huh. We didn’t eliminate software engineers. We just made good engineers better.”
That’s the ditch. And it’s going to be uncomfortable.
But this is also an opportunity.
If you’re an engineer, it’s drama
Use the tool. Don’t worship them. Don’t ignore them.
Let AI handle the things you shouldn’t spend your life on:
- repetitive scaffolding
- “Write a boring version of this”
- first draft
- Finding the correct API call
- turning a concept into a starting point
Then do what engineers have always done:
- make it right
- keep it simple
- make it maintainable
- make it real
Because magic isn’t “typing code”.
The magic is turning dirty human intentions into something a computer can reliably execute in the real world.
And that part still needs you.
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