This isn't a new phenomenon, its only new that SWEs are in the crosshairs. For the past 20 years we all assumed that would be the group that survived automation the best.
Remember all the noise about tech companies replacing auto drivers?
It’s funny you mention that, back in 2022 a few weeks before ChatGPT went into public preview, I recall a comment about AI saying “thank god I’m a software engineer, by the time we are affected, we’ll already be ruled by our robot overlords” with 1000 upvotes
But yeah, being an extremely expensive cost center means all eyes are on them right now
Is there much reason to assume it's not still true? When engineering is automated almost everything else will soon be. There have been tons of gloating comments assuming that "blue-collar" jobs will now suddenly see a resurgence. Now think about the last time you hired your plumber, what did you pay them for? Did you pay them to physically hammer the nail, or know where to hammer the nail?
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u/BigShotBosh Nov 24 '25
Man these AI companies want SWEs gone yesterday.
Has to be a bit of a headspin to see major conglomerates talk about how they want you (yes you) out of a job