Technology has changed greatly over the years. AI or Artificial Intelligence is an exciting new development that has created many new opportunities. We see AI in so many fields already like education, healthcare, e-commerce, marketing, hospitality, and others. Often, AI can be more methodical and efficient compared to humans.
For example, smart vehicles and smart buildings are already lowering carbon emissions. Machine learning has allowed engineers to create self-driving cars, robots, recognize images and speech, and forecast trends in the market.
We see the influence of new-age concepts like artificial intelligence and machine learning even in software development. AI is assisting with basic UI designs, leaving more intricate jobs to humans as artificial intelligence cannot solve complex problems.
AI assists teams in documenting and debugging software. Developers are also using AI to collaborate with teammates and stakeholders. AI is increasingly being used for support requests and speeding up operations.
Naturally, there is growing excitement around AI. But there are also concerns. Many worry that AI may eventually replace software engineers.
Developers’ Sentiments Towards AI
For many years, there was a real worry that robots may take our jobs. A few years later, with the arrival of artificial intelligence, many are now wondering whether AI may replace them someday. Many software developers are anticipating budget cuts and mass layoffs.
Sometimes, AI is very good at manual and monotonous jobs like going through or generating code. However, creating and maintaining software isn’t the only task of a software developer. There are commercial and usability elements in software design, which are very important. There is bug fixing and judgment call. So, artificial intelligence cannot replace a human developer yet. However, AI is often getting integrated into the work.
Most developers are welcoming AI.
- 76% of developers are already using AI tools or planning to use them while creating software, up from 70% last year. So, there is now a wider acceptance of the use of artificial intelligence in software development.
- 72% of all developers favor the use of AI tools. Of this, 23.6% see AI’s introduction ‘very favorably’, while 48.3% marked it ‘favorably’.
Source: Survey Stackoverflow
Will AI Replace Software Engineers?
As of 2024 and also in the near foreseeable future, AI cannot replace human software developers because AI still has several limitations. Bill Gates in a recent interview stated that “We are not going to stop needing the software engineers”.
Gates dismissed the fears saying that they were “alarmist”. He agreed that AI automation may eventually replace many jobs but he doesn’t see this happening in the next 20 years.
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Experts at Overcode, a software developer from Europe, agree with the study’s findings and believe that artificial intelligence cannot fully replace humans, but it can significantly change the methods and approaches to software development.
AI faces the following problems in software development –
- Managing the development process – There are data privacy and security concerns. One major challenge is also data dependency. Also, there is worry about data biases. There are stories of AI biases as the technology is not conscious. All this can compromise the development process.
- Solving complex problems – Often, software development decisions are complicated. A deep understanding of the user needs, business requirements, and technical constraints is needed. Artificial intelligence can provide insights, driven by data. However, it cannot be a replacement for human judgment for critical decisions. AI lacks the critical thinking abilities and creativity of humans.
- Creating secure modern code – AI-generated codes often don’t have the meticulousness you will find in human-created codes. There can be hidden issues, which may cause security vulnerabilities and bugs. There is a risk of unauthorized access or data breaches, which can compromise confidentiality and privacy.
How AI Can Help a Developer
It is extremely unlikely that artificial intelligence will replace human coders in the near future. AI-powered tools can make life easier for them.
Software engineers may use artificial intelligence to automate some types of development jobs to improve efficiency and productivity. For instance, AI-powered tools can generate code snippets automatically, and help in finding and fixing bugs. The saved time can then be used on more critical areas of software development.
AI tools are good at generating code snippets for pre-defined specific tasks. Artificial intelligence can also be used to optimize the code by locating inefficient and redundant parts and may also suggest improvements. However, it is never a good idea to depend completely on AI for code generation. A human coder must always check the code because AI-written code can be sloppy.
What AI Models Help Developers?
Developers can use several AI models to improve productivity, optimize workflows, and create smarter solutions. Here are a few great options –
GitHub Copilot – This AI-powered code completion tool has been developed in collaboration with OpenAI. It is extremely popular. GitHub says that more than a million developers have used it already. It helps developers auto-complete the codes by suggesting blocks or lines of code, which speeds up coding.
Bito – This tool uses machine learning algorithms for analyzing code and suggesting improvements. Working in real-time, Bito provides recommendations that improve the code quality. This AI-powered tool is compatible with many programming languages like Java, JavaScript, and Python.
Amazon CodeWhisperer – This is a very good model for developers who work within the Integrated Development Environment (IDE). It creates code in real time based on existing commands and code. It can also scan for vulnerabilities in the code and find security issues. It can then suggest improvements.
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How to Adapt
AI is here to stay and also its involvement in software development. Both tech companies and software engineers need to look for emerging developments and implement artificial engineering in their coding work to improve processes without removing the human touch.
- Try no-code/low-code solutions – Low-code helps both professionals and non-technical people to work together, allowing individuals with varying skills to collaborate.
- Explore the possibilities of AI – Artificial intelligence has already impacted various industries and is here to stay. Healthcare, engineering, and education have embraced it. Software development also needs to explore its various possibilities to better and quicken up coding.
- Plan the implementation of AI in the long term – Developers need to analyze how to blend human intuition and problem-solving skills with the productivity and efficiency of AI. This will be the best strategy in the long term.
- Analyze the risks – There are several AI models that may work. Analyze their risks and find out what works best for you. Select software that best matches your coding needs.
Many software developers are already using AI to write better programs. This will become the norm as the popularity of artificial intelligence tools increases. AI tools will carry out coding tasks given by human programmers and the developer will finally review the code. AI tools will remove all labor-intensive aspects of coding.
