The interesting question isn’t whether AI replaces engineers, but whether the profession can adapt to a world where the order of learning is flipped. Benjamin Button still lived a full life — just not in the sequence anyone expected. Are software careers heading the same way.
Yes, software careers are heading this way but adaptation is key. The profession survives if we recognize AI doesn't eliminate the need for deep understanding; it changes when and how that understanding develops.
I'm curious, what are the main benefits a seasoned developer working with AI has over a younger developer? Why can't young developers use AI just as effectively?
Seasoned developers know what questions to ask and what answers to reject.
Young developers can execute with AI just as well. Veterans have judgment from past mistakes and can spot brittle solutions and hidden complexity to avoid accepting the LLM responses. That pattern recognition can't be prompt-engineered.