In the middle of the ai cloud, developers often forget that software engineering isn't just about coding, it's much more than that. It's about solving human problems, big or small. It's about critical thinking. I entered this field for that reason, long before without knew it was a high-paying job or even thought about that aspect.
We've always used technology to help us build software. AI is just another tool in that way, like how we used to search on StackOverflow, forums, documentation, and asking friends. But we didn’t blindly rely on those, we make sure we understood what we were doing. (Which, to be honest, I've failed at many times, doing things I didn't fully understand)
Now, I use ai to improve my work, speed things up, and pair-review with it. Plus, i use it for learning.
But i see ai as a tool, not a replacement for my own growth. I'm not giving up on learning or ignoring the knowledge gaps I want to fill, ai is a great mentor, but software development isn't something you "finish" learning.
So, SWE isn't disappearing, ai is a powerful assistant, but we should treat it as a mentor. And we need to remind ourselves of that, because it's easy to forget when you just getting things done..
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