Whilst AI has exploded into everyone’s lives, it has made a bigger impact on some more than others. In some cases, it even affecting a person’s ability make a living, or destroys thoughts of progressing in their careers.
One such group is the specialists who program our computers, phones, and well, just about anything these days. These coders must have looked in horror as ChatGPT was shown creating line after line of code in mere seconds.
There is no doubt that AI has caused a revolution in Software Development, the coding assistants and large language models looming large on the stage. The shock was large enough to cause many developers to question their future and for some budding developers to consider an alternative career.
In reality the situation is far from dire, AI simply not being able to completely replace the human coder. AI will have an effect though, but far from being worrying, AI could actually be a great help as it could take some more mundane tasks away from any developer.
One of the reasons that AI’s effect is limited is that it cannot understand the broader context in which it is operating, this making it harder to make the right decisions while creating any code.
Another is AI’s current inability to create code at a consistent level. We have all seen the strange answers AI has provided on the Internet, Apple even had to remove part of their AI system from their phones in January 2025 as it had started to misinterpret news items.
Perhaps the biggest drawback is AI’s inability to create anything new. After all, it works by feeding off things it has found and ‘learnt’ from the past, so while it is very good at repeating and reusing these ideas, it cannot come up with something truly new.
Lastly, it has limited debugging capabilities. It can identify some errors, but only if it has come across them before.
The Role of the Human Overseer
Because AI has the limitations noted above, it is vital that some form of checks are carried out. Therefore humans are needed to verify the correctness of any code and that it is being used in the right circumstances.
Also, with cyber security being such a hot topic, human intervention is needed to ensure that any security concerns are met.
How the Focus of the Developer is shifting
As AI takes on some of the ‘manual labour’ of coding, the developers’ role is changing so that they:-
- Have more time to concentrate on System Design and coding architecture
- Can use their human abilities to translate a business requirement into a workable technological solution
- Whilst continuing to develop their problem-solving, algorithmic thinking and soft skills like communication and collaboration
Then there are the new Opportunities that AI is Creating
It is obvious that AI is itself a computer application, and that means that there is a new breed of coders required to develop AI, whilst other ‘Prompt’ engineers are needed, the Prompt being the way that many AI tools are interacted with.
Then there is the fact that a new role of Human / AI collaboration experts are going to be needed to bridge the gap between this new technology and the ‘old’ World.
Then there is the Important Issue of Interface Design
While AI is incredibly good at understanding technology, it has little real awareness of how humans operate, which means that at the moment, at least, AI is unable to create interfaces that are as easy to operate as any user would wish.
Yet another reason why your coding job is safe.
Understanding the Users Behaviours and their Needs
One of the many things that humans excel at is understanding the needs of other humans, and the pain points that they feel. They are also very good at anticipating how any user will act.
Also being human, they are better at creating interfaces that are enjoyable, maybe even fun to use, whilst also being capable of better meeting the needs of certain groups or demographics.
All of these underline the fact that humans are simply better at creativity, intuition and are more adaptable than any current AI system.
I hope you can see that anyone employed in the software development industry or who is thinking of making a career as a coder, that there is nothing at all to worry about.
Surely, things are changing and will continue to change, perhaps at an even faster rate than before, but as that is true for just about any aspect of life, it should not be something to worry about.
However, with the advent of AI, it could be a good time to check on your current skills list so that you can fill any gaps, and here there is no doubt that Framework Training will have something to offer.