We hear it all the time: AI will replace us all. It will become smarter than us, and now Nobel Peace Prize winners are saying it will lead to human extinction within the next decade. We have Jensen Huang saying we won’t need software developers anymore, we have companies drinking the Kool aid and laying off 80% of their staff who refused to use AI. It’s coming at us from all angles, pushing new grads further into despair in one of the most difficult times to get a job in the computer science industry.
The Downfall of Society
The dangerous messaging that computer science is a dying field will lead to experts retiring without replacements. AI developed systems will break, like they do currently, and we will no longer have air traffic control, broadcast systems, or any other technology we rely on daily. The very fabric of our technology systems will disintegrate into an unmaintainable mess that cannot be reconciled, and cannot be rebuilt by a population that lacks the critical thinking skills to do anything about it.
The AI companies that have multi billion to trillion dollar evaluations will crumble into nothing. The companies they rely on, that they convinced to replace humans, will no longer have a functioning product, and will no longer have funding to keep their businesses operating. All of this will occur while Artificial Super intelligence will have the IQ of a junior dev, but cost as much as a Principle. Companies will lay off all of their technical staff, just to be left with an AI workforce whose costs get cranked to infinity as soon as AI companies realize it’s no longer possible for customers to opt out.
Not only will profits diminish from increased AI cost, but revenue will disappear when your customers are on food stamps. Who do you think will buy your products, the same people whose jobs you cut that can no longer afford an apartment or even the reasonably priced $20 cheeseburger from Mcdonalds? I’m sure people will chose their $20 gemini subscription to generate cat photos while they’re starving on the streets right? For me personally, I give a ton of money right back to my employer by using their products. In the world where I don’t have a job, I can’t do that.
This isn’t the end
I don’t actually believe that AI will lead to the downfall of society (hopefully). Humans are unique, our minds work in mysterious ways that have allowed us to evolve over billions of years and be the dominate species on our planet. I already see the decline of software quality today, I imagine that this issue will snowball into an accelerating decline. Critical software, especially government systems are developed slowly, over the matter of 10’s of years versus months in private industry. My hope is that the move-fast, break-shit industry collapses so rapdily that it never makes it’s way to critical systems that keep society together. This will of course destroy economies, but hopefully we’ll still be able to have bank accounts and logistical networks so we can eat and keep a roof over our heads.
The only thing super about AI is it’s ability to reduce human intelligence so much, that it is relatively more intelligent. Without it, human intelligence would continue to grow as it has throughout history and AI would remain stagnant or decline as we are already seeing with new models.
Word of Advice to Businesses
Investing in human jobs is more than a short term investment to drive profits, it is a strategic investment into the future of your company. When you’re paying an employee for an hour of work, you’re not just getting the product or feature they are creating, but you are developing a better engineer. Paired with proper leadership, your employee will get better day by day, week by week, and year over year as they learn the business, build human connections, and deliver results.
This investement is stolen from you in the world of AI. You are now paying for deliverables and helping make the AI better. An AI that you don’t own, can’t use without a subscription, and is given directly to your competitors. So your basically paying money to give your ip to companies that have been caught steeling copyrighted books off the internet to give to your competitors. At the same time, you are erradicating the human alternative locking yourself into what will be the most expensive technology of all time.
Word of advice for those struggling right now
The job market sucks right now, powerful people are throwing out doomsday messaging, and it’s leaving many in despair. The most powerful piece of advice that helped me get through my hardest moments was to push harder, and stay productive. The natural instinct is to give up when times get hard, you don’t see the point, you tell yourself that it’s out of your control, but that will only make things worse. Take control of what you can, and strive to make yourself better in whatever you do. Follow your interests, explore your hobbies, get off of leetcode and build a side project. These are not only things that will build your skills, but will also give you talking points in your interviews, and also build a sense of self worth. This is how I landed atleast my first job, and likely my Amazon position. This has also been the difference between a hire and no hire decision I have made for candidates.
Things will get better, don’t beat yourself up, and try to focus on what makes you happy.
Keep it swizzy
J