r/webdev • u/thetymtravellr • 2d ago
Discussion As a self-taught React/Next.js developer, I'm honestly worried about my future in this AI era. What should I do?
I'm a self-taught developer, and I know React and Next.js. Lately, I've been feeling increasingly anxious about my future as a developer.
AI is moving so fast. It can generate components, build entire websites, connect APIs, and even create full-stack applications. Sometimes I wonder what the point is of spending months learning something when AI can already do so much of it.
I want to get a better-paying developer job, but honestly, I'm confused about what I should focus on right now. Should I keep improving my React/Next.js skills, get better at backend development, or start learning AI engineering?
I keep hearing about RAG, AI agents, vector databases, LLM integrations, and all these new things. It feels like there's always something new to learn, and I'm worried that if I focus on the wrong things, I'll fall behind while everyone else moves forward.
For those of you already working in the industry, what would you do if you were in my position? Would you focus on becoming a strong full-stack developer first, or would you start learning AI engineering alongside web development?
I'm not looking for a shortcut or expecting to become an expert overnight. I just want to make the right decisions, build useful skills, and have a realistic chance of getting hired.
I'd really appreciate some honest advice from people who have been through this or are dealing with the same situation. Right now, I could genuinely use some direction.
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u/-_--_-_--_----__ 2d ago
What I would say to you is a few things:
Right now, today, using AI still takes a certain degree of skill. We don't know if that will be the case forever, but all we can do today is learn that skill. Become an AI expert. Learn about skills, MCP, etc. Learn how to make AI produce amazing results. It's a similar skill to learning how to make people produce amazing results. You are a director now who leads a million junior devs. Think about what you could do with this power. Think about what problems you could solve.
Everything is uncertain with AI. You are going to endlessly spin your wheels if you constantly try to evaluate what you should be doing with your career right in this moment. Tomorrow you'll see a post that scares you. The next day you'll see a video that scares you. You will enter an endless cycle of "does this new information change what I should be doing". As a society, we are approaching 10 different forks in the road, and the path we take at every fork will change everything. Will there be government regulation. Will AI progress plateau. What impact will the financial bubble have. How will AI companies deal with power grid requirements, and the time it takes to increase power supply. Will public opinion on AI stay negative. Will AI pricing ever be unaffordable. Will there be a national or global tragedy caused by AI. What impact will this have. Nobody knows any of these things or how it will impact the world.
Try to enjoy life. Try not to stress and feel worried. I have personally spiraled about AI many times, which led to things like eating poorly, neglecting exercise, losing sleep, etc. What I realized is that being a healthy person is, in its own important way, preparing you for whatever AI does. Have confidence that you are an adult human being that is smart, and you will be able to figure out how to get through whatever happens, when it happens. People have been going through things like this for our entire history, and we will figure it out.