With AI becoming more capable every day, I’ve been reflecting on what my core competency as a software engineer really is. And I don’t think it’s “writing code” anymore.
Anyone can build an app now — that part has become simple. The harder part is building an app (or anything else) that actually solves a problem for real people. That’s where the real value lies.
Of course, engineering skills still matter. You still need to understand the code you write — the internals, best practices, security fundamentals. Without that foundation, you’re just hacking things together without really knowing what you’ve built. But those skills on their own aren’t enough anymore.
The difference-maker is everything around the code:
- Being reliable.
- Building fast, failing fast, learning fast, and trying again.
- Caring about users and customers, not just the tech.
- Contributing to open source as a way to grow, sharpen your skills, and stay connected to the community.
I came across this thought from my colleague Sunil Pai recently, and it resonated with me:
this might sound extremely reductive, and I’ll probably write something longer about it; but recording a thought I’ve now had for weeks and have heard variations from enough other people that there’s a pattern emerging:
the future belongs to people who can think and act clearly, deeply, and practically.
(always has. but the gulf will now widen. the environment is adversarial. the rewards are uncountable.)
Because anyone can write code now. Not everyone can solve problems.