u/Think_Bad3906 wrote (the comment Michael replied to):
People say that AI will replace junior engineers but not senior ones. However, since many companies have already stopped hiring junior engineers because of AI, could this create a talent gap in the future—where today’s juniors might actually become more in demand in the future wh
u/michaelnovati replied · ★ FEATURED
Hello! Good observation.
The junior market isn't completely gone or being completely replaced by AI. The top tech companies are hiring INTERNS from the top schools and those people are getting entry level jobs and progressing.
The thing that changed is instead of it being like 5 juniors : 2 mid levels : 1 senior, the ratios are more like 2 juniors: 2 mid levels: 1 senior.
And I think AI makes those ratios work rather than just flat out replacing the juniors.
It's all money at the end of the day - junior engineers LOSE MONEY at top tier companies, but the reason they got hired is that the 2 year investment to get them productive broke even and paid off afterwards.
AI can both help and hurt that. It can help by making juniors progress FASTER and be break even SOONER. But it can also empower mids and seniors to be more productive themselves and raise the bar of what "break even" expectations means.
I'm not sure where it's going to land, but with the current economy, I see a lot of cautiously wait and see and see the current status quo as the norm for a while.