Enjoy the ride

In research that should surprise absolutely no-one who’s ever been involved in software development, there’s evidence that generative AI tools are strongly-correlated with more copy/paste, less code refactoring and reuse, and higher code churn.

In other words, faster output, high volatility and lower long-term quality.

If I was going to extrapolate this to the industry as a whole, I’d expect a drop in demand for experienced software developers over the next couple of years as companies go all-in on the apparent savings…

…followed by an explosion in demand for people who can sort out the mess that was caused…

…and an absolute shortage of those skills thanks to the hollowing-out of the workforce while AI is the apparent answer.

Enjoy the ride!