Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei predicts that AI will handle all coding tasks by next year, but this is causing an existential crisis for some software engineers. Shawn K, a software engineer with two decades of experience and a computer science degree, lost his job last April and is now struggling financially—living in an RV, DoorDashing, and selling belongings on eBay after his previous $150, 000 salary vanished. Though tech layoffs are not new to him—having lost jobs after the 2008 financial crisis and the pandemic—this time feels different. After sending 800 applications, he has received fewer than 10 interviews, some conducted by AI agents rather than humans, leaving him feeling “invisible” and filtered out before human consideration. He fears this is only the start of a “social and economic disaster tidal wave, ” calling it the “Great Displacement” already underway. K’s last role was with a company focused on the metaverse, once touted as the next big thing but now eclipsed by AI advancements like ChatGPT. Now, with no tech job prospects in central New York, his income comes from low-paying gig work and sales, bringing in only a few hundred dollars. He considered returning to school for a tech certificate or a trucking license, but costs were prohibitive.

While software engineering remains classified as a fast-growing field by the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, stories like K’s highlight a growing disconnect. Amodei foresees AI writing 90% of code by September and potentially all code within 12 months, a shift that contributed to over 150, 000 tech layoffs in 2024 and an additional 50, 000 in early 2025. K warns this trend threatens nearly everyone and laments the lack of societal solutions addressing these impacts. He criticizes companies for using AI primarily to cut costs by downsizing talent rather than augmenting workers’ capabilities. Despite losing his job, K remains hopeful and identifies as an “AI maximalist, ” accepting that if AI outperforms him, it’s not personal. His real frustration lies in businesses clinging to outdated mindsets, cutting developer teams instead of leveraging AI to exponentially increase productivity.