How Artificial Intelligence is changing the role of software developer

We hear it all the time, AI is rapidly changing the way we work. In almost every field, whether it’s health, real estate, oil and gas or entertainment, we are seeing that AI and generative AI is a useful replacement for repetitive tasks freeing up more time for employees and making organizations more effective. 

It’s also having a disruptive effect in the world of software development. According to this recent LinkedIn post, some industry observers are noticing that AI and generative AI is replacing junior and emerging developers. 

Are we seeing this trend in Calgary? Can AI really generate high-quality code and make developers more productive? And, what are the future job opportunities for junior developers as AI becomes an ever-present tool in our jobs and daily lives?

We ask three of our team members for their “hot takes” on the following questions:

Are you seeing fewer opportunities for junior roles in Calgary - is it because of AI or other factors?

Shane Fast, Technical Facilitator: Anecdotally, I think the number of Junior positions have been recovering since a low approximately 9 months to 1 year ago (although still a lot to be desired). I think companies that have over-indexed on AI last year are correcting as its current limitations are being realized. 

Tony Enerson, Technical Facilitator:   I have always seen a systemic issue in scaling tech companies I have been involved with that they will never post for a junior position out of the gate. They will always want prior experience with their technology stack, so their first posting will be the ask for 3-5 years of experience with REACT, or PHP or whatever they use.  If that hiring run fails then the company will go back and spread the filter to similar tech stacks, and on the third run decide if they are willing to train a newcomer.

Nicole Johnson, People Lead:  I wouldn't say I am seeing fewer opportunities. In fact, I often see notifications for Junior roles. Companies like to bring in junior positions to help mold them so that they don't come in with preconceived ways of how to do things. 

How effective is AI at developing code vs debugging code? 

Shane: Personally, it’s hit and miss. I like it for very narrow, common tasks. Beyond a specific unit of code or simple apps,  most tools I’ve used fall on their face pretty quickly. For now, I treat it like I treat using Wikipedia for research - as a starting point. I also have concerns about the code quality, as noted here. It suggests that first writes being done with AI have to be replaced or fixed at a higher frequency than normal code. 

Tony: As a tool, it is quite potent in the hands of a developer who already has tool familiarity because they can read the code and understand it as a part of getting into the codebase. It is handy for learning new syntax or seeing code samples that use APIs they may be unfamiliar with.  In the hands of a newcomer, it can be a real disaster - the equivalent of dropping yourself into a foreign country with a phrase book and blindly saying whatever it prompts without true understanding of what the phrase means. Those people say they get stuck "debugging" the GPT code”, but in fact, it is their understanding that has failed.

Nicole:  In my experience, I am seeing that organizations will include AI as a “nice to have” in a general posting (meaning not an AI-specific job).  A lot of companies don't have the intel on AI yet, but know they need to educate themselves and want to bring in talent to help in that space.

What’s the future for junior and emerging developers - are there still opportunities? 

Shane:  I could see there being a more stark bifurcation between types of developers. For example,  a larger group of low code/ai assisted developers vs a smaller group of developers with more experience and deep knowledge. Sort of like what we see today with people who can use low code options to build a site like Wix or Squarespace vs developers who can code a site from scratch. There’s room and a need for both. 

Tony: The underlying force of constant technology change is what I think drives the ever-present need for new talent.  What is happening in the industry is that the definition of an "entry-level position" in tech is changing to adapt to the new tools.

The impact of generative AI may go the way of “Ruby”, a web development toolkit that became popular with a generation of developers. What ended up happening is that with constant productivity gains of the toolkit and programmers that use it, the need for adding new/junior people to the community vanished.  One of the results is it became an insular community and slowly drifted away from what web application development has evolved into today. The same could happen with AI…a few generations of developers will head off in that direction instead of core software development. 

The need for technical people will never decrease, simply shift as tools change the productivity in certain domains of development.  The use of generative AI unlocks new potential that was only reachable before if you could assemble a team of specialists.  It also unlocks the new challenges that come when you face that potential.  The interesting thing is that we meet tech challenges with tech solutions - so we always need new people and fresh perspectives.  

Nicole: Hybrid and remote positions are still on the rise, and the world is becoming smaller with more opportunities. Companies are looking for skilled professionals who can develop and optimize AI and generative AI, but also recognize AI can’t replace human competencies and creativity.  The essential skills components we teach at InceptionU remain as important, if not more important, than ever. Contrary to the predicted jobs that AI will replace, the World Economic Forum predicts that AI will create 12 million more positions than it would replace. 

Want to learn more?

If you are curious about launching a career in software development or adding on adjacent technologies such as AI/ML, cloud computing, cybersecurity or design, please reach out to info@inceptionu.com and inquire about our fall and winter programs.