Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has once again expressed concern about the future of programmer jobs, revealing that artificial intelligence (AI) at Meta is already reaching the capabilities of mid-level software engineers, writes indiatoday.in.
During a podcast on Joe Rogan's YouTube channel, Zuckerberg shared his vision for the role of AI in the future job market.
He said that by 2025, AI at Meta and other technology companies could effectively replace mid-level programmers currently working. This would represent a major shift in the way tech companies approach software development.
“We're going to get to a point where all the code in our apps is written by AI engineers, instead of human engineers,“ he said.
According to Business Insider, mid-level software engineers at Meta currently earn an average of six figures, and AI could significantly reduce payroll costs.
Zuckerberg's comments come as other tech giants, such as Google and IBM, are also integrating AI into their operations, raising similar concerns.
Sundar Pichai, Google's CEO, recently announced that over 25% of all new code at Google is now generated by AI, with humans stepping in for final reviews.
Meanwhile, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna revealed by 2023, AI could replace up to 30% of back-office roles in a company.
The trend seen across sectors is sparking debate about the future of traditional jobs for programmers. Are their jobs at risk?
Zuckerberg's latest statement suggests that the role of live programmers is changing, potentially leading to fewer jobs in the industry in the traditional sense. Instead of spending time on routine tasks, engineers may need to focus on solving higher-level problems and overseeing AI-generated code.
As AI becomes more integrated into technical workflows, junior and entry-level coding positions may decline, forcing more ambitious developers to rethink their career paths.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom for engineers. The growing role of AI in code generation may actually allow programmers to focus on more strategic and creative aspects of development.
It is important to note that human engineers cannot be replaced in the long term, because they can solve complex problems that AI cannot handle on its own, and more value will be placed on skills that complement it.
Klarna, a leading fintech company, has also supported AI-driven automation by reducing its workforce by 20% in the last year without hiring replacements. CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski said AI is now performing almost all tasks traditionally performed by human employees, signaling another shift toward an AI-dominated future.
The company, which previously had 4,500 employees, now has 3,500, and according to the boss, "this reduction happened naturally".