All of this should have been front-page political discourse for the past year. Every candidate. Every debate. But no one knows how to talk about it—because almost everyone has their head in the sand.
The truth is, the middle class functions as a semi-meritocratic pseudo universal basic income, and it's already being dismantled by white-collar automation. What’s happening to tech is just the leading edge. Every sector that uses a computer will follow.
People worry about ChatGPT taking their jobs. But it won’t be a chatbot. It’ll be API integration into SaaS platforms—quiet, systemic, and invisible. The real threat is the Software-as-a-Service to Employee-as-a-Service paradigm shift. It will hollow out entire regions, industries, and economic identities—fast.
That Silicon Valley might be ourborus-ing itself is an interesting point of view. It makes sense — coders trying to simplify their own jobs ultimately simplify the job so much that it makes them replaceable.
I share your concern on the subject of Senior Engineers. Where, exactly, are we planning on getting skilled senior coders if no one wants to hire newbie trainees who will one day become senior coders?
In all honesty, this might just be the industry naturally restructuring itself. Maybe this is how weavers felt when the power loom was first introduced.
Excellent substack! I have been telling similar synopsis to people. There has been too much fear mongering going around. I think all these AI tools are augmenting people’s work and making them more productive. This substack is about software engineers, but people in Sales who are using AI tools help them make more sales as it reduces lot of research. The companies who deploy this tools are getting better ROI by not reducing workforce (operational cost) but by generating more revenue.
Thanks. Love these insights.
Personally, I think the AI code tsunami will create more work for engineers.
https://substack.jurgenappelo.com/p/the-ai-code-tsunami
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All of this should have been front-page political discourse for the past year. Every candidate. Every debate. But no one knows how to talk about it—because almost everyone has their head in the sand.
The truth is, the middle class functions as a semi-meritocratic pseudo universal basic income, and it's already being dismantled by white-collar automation. What’s happening to tech is just the leading edge. Every sector that uses a computer will follow.
People worry about ChatGPT taking their jobs. But it won’t be a chatbot. It’ll be API integration into SaaS platforms—quiet, systemic, and invisible. The real threat is the Software-as-a-Service to Employee-as-a-Service paradigm shift. It will hollow out entire regions, industries, and economic identities—fast.
And the kicker? Bots don’t pay taxes.
Excellent comprehensive summary. Great read.
Some of your readers may find my article useful: "How AI will reorganize society" (written 3 years ago and still rings true):
https://medium.com/@vinbhalerao/how-ai-will-reorganize-society-a12db16a9a66
That Silicon Valley might be ourborus-ing itself is an interesting point of view. It makes sense — coders trying to simplify their own jobs ultimately simplify the job so much that it makes them replaceable.
I share your concern on the subject of Senior Engineers. Where, exactly, are we planning on getting skilled senior coders if no one wants to hire newbie trainees who will one day become senior coders?
In all honesty, this might just be the industry naturally restructuring itself. Maybe this is how weavers felt when the power loom was first introduced.
Excellent substack! I have been telling similar synopsis to people. There has been too much fear mongering going around. I think all these AI tools are augmenting people’s work and making them more productive. This substack is about software engineers, but people in Sales who are using AI tools help them make more sales as it reduces lot of research. The companies who deploy this tools are getting better ROI by not reducing workforce (operational cost) but by generating more revenue.