Programming Jobs Are Evolving, Not Disappearing
I recently read an article by Andrew Ng in The Batch newsletter issue 292, and I felt it shared an interesting perspective—especially when we see people commenting that AI will take over programming jobs. Here's a short summary of the article, along with my own interpretation of it.
Andrew Ng is one of the most influential voices in AI today. He co-founded Coursera, led the Google Brain project, and was the Chief Scientist at Baidu. Now, through DeepLearning.AI, he continues to educate and guide people in understanding and applying AI.
Why Programming Is Still Important
AI tools like GitHub Copilot and ChatGPT can now write code. So, do we still need to learn programming? According to Andrew Ng, absolutely yes. Knowing how to code helps you:
Understand what the AI is doing
Spot and fix mistakes
Give better instructions to AI tools. Without a basic understanding of code, you’re just copying and pasting the code without knowing whether it will work properly or why.
How Programming Jobs Will Change
Andrew doesn’t believe AI will replace programmers. Instead, it will change how programming is done:
AI will handle more routine and repetitive code.
Programmers will focus more on design, logic, and reviewing AI-generated code—basically, orchestrating the software development process.
Rather than writing every line of code, the programmer’s role is shifting toward guiding, reviewing, and refining AI-generated output.What Will Be Different in the Future
Faster Development: AI tools make development quicker, helping teams build more in less time.
Smarter Professionals: Those who combine coding skills with AI tool usage will be “10x professionals”— meaning much more productive than before.
Broader Use: Even non-programmers will find it helpful to understand code, as AI becomes part of every profession.
Final Thoughts
Learning programming today isn’t just about writing code. It’s about communicating with AI, solving real-world problems, and staying relevant in a rapidly changing tech world. Andrew Ng’s message is clear: this is one of the best times to learn programming—because AI will only make you more powerful if you know how to work with it.