Hello, fellow hackers! Something I have been battling with recently is the existential crisis that AI seems to be bringing to the software engineering careers. I’m a generalist senior engineer, which has helped me keep up with the evolving demands of the industry. I often try to work on side projects to gain experience in domains that my job doesn’t allow me to.

But lately, with how quickly AI is evolving, I can’t help but feel that I may not be moving fast enough. It seems everyone is pushing to replace engineers with AI. If you’re not working on AI directly, it seems that you risk eventually being unemployed or underemployed.

I have contemplated switching completely to AI but it seems that more and more AI roles require you to already have experience in the field. Balancing a full time job with having to constantly keep up with all the developments in the world of AI is proving to be harder and harder. I can’t help but feel the dread and anxiety that I am slowly moving towards a world where I will be left behind. Does anyone else feel the same way? If so, how do you keep up? How do you balance work with learning?