March 7, 2026
Coderocalypse Now
I don't know if my job will still exist in ten years
Engineers brace for AI takeover: panic, pivots, and ‘AI babysitter’ memes
TLDR: A senior engineer warns AI that writes and fixes code could erase many programming jobs, especially junior roles. Commenters split between doom (industry crushed), pragmatism (humans still run orgs), and optimism (devs will manage AI/no‑code), with jokes about becoming “AI babysitters” and debates over companies over‑ or under‑reacting.
A veteran coder’s essay wonders if software jobs will survive the decade—and the comments went full soap opera. Some readers went dark, with one sighing, “the wheel of industry… crushes everyone,” while others asked the real question: If coding dies, what’s Plan B? One popular reply floated switching to psychology because “human connection” matters—even if AI chatbots can mimic therapists.
The piece itself says AI “agents” (AI programs that can write and fix code) could wipe out junior roles first, leaving seniors to herd robot interns. Cue the culture clash: doomers vs. pragmatists vs. optimists. A sharp take argued AI still isn’t plugged into company politics, so it works best when a high‑initiative human acts as the bridge. Translation: the org chart still needs people, not just models. Another camp stayed upbeat: experienced devs will run the tools, wrangle no‑code platforms, and manage the chaos.
Meanwhile, the memes flowed. “AI babysitter” and “prompt janitor” jokes trended, and one commenter mocked the timeline: “Ten years? Try ten months.” The big fight: will companies “overshoot” and fire too many, only to crawl back begging seniors to untangle AI spaghetti? Or “undershoot” and keep hiring humans a bit longer? The only consensus: everyone’s refreshing the discussion with sweaty palms and gallows humor.
Key Points
- •The author contrasts strong software engineering job security in 2021 with uncertainty in 2026 due to AI agents.
- •They expect a shift from coding to supervising AI agents, with junior and mid-level roles being most vulnerable first.
- •The article outlines undershoot and overshoot scenarios for AI adoption and their implications for demand for senior engineers.
- •Past predictions of the field’s demise (high-level languages, outsourcing) didn’t come true, but the author argues AI-driven obsolescence is different.
- •The author doubts the Jevons effect will offset automation, claiming AI can write, fix, and clean code better than many engineers and is improving quickly.