About this episode

Scott Hanselman interviews Gergely Orosz about the impact of AI on software engineering and the future of developer roles.

AI is moving faster than our collective ability to metabolize it. Between copilots, agents, vibe coding, and the ever-shifting definition of “senior engineer,” developers are asking a deeper question. Where is this all actually going? In this episode, Scott sits down with Gergely Orosz, author of The Pragmatic Engineer and longtime observer of how software gets built inside high-performing teams, to separate signal from hype. They dig into what AI is really doing to day-to-day engineering work. Productivity boosts versus skill atrophy. The changing expectations for junior developers. Whether “AI-first” companies are structurally different or simply marketing-forward. Gergely brings his trademark data-driven pragmatism, grounded in conversations with hundreds of engineering leaders navigating hiring freezes, agent experiments, and the reshaping of career ladders. Scott and Gergely also explore the human side. What happens to craftsmanship when code is abundant. How we teach the next generation to think, not just prompt. Why developer experience may matter more, not less, in an AI-accelerated world. Along the way, they consider whether we are watching a platform shift on the scale…

People in this episode

Host: Scott Hanselman

Guest: Gergely Orosz

Topics covered

• AI in software development
• engineering productivity
• junior developer expectations
• AI-first companies
• craftsmanship in coding
• developer experience

Keywords

• AI
• software engineering
• productivity
• junior developers
• craftsmanship
• developer experience
• Pragmatic Programmer

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Pragmatic Engineer

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