Ask HN: Is Programming as a Profession Cooked? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Is Programming as a Profession Cooked?

#31

Post by [deleted] » Mon, Jan 12, 2026, 3:46 PM UTC

hahahahhaah wrote: post #30

savorypiano wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The last 1% in FSD is an asymptotic challenge. The last 1% in a CRUD app codebase just requires a few engineers.

The last 1% of FSD needs a teenager with 30 hours driving experience. (using the premise of your second sentence applied to the first)

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: Is Programming as a Profession Cooked?

#32

Post by savorypiano » Mon, Jan 12, 2026, 3:49 PM UTC

hahahahhaah wrote: post #30

savorypiano wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The last 1% in FSD is an asymptotic challenge. The last 1% in a CRUD app codebase just requires a few engineers.

The last 1% of FSD needs a teenager with 30 hours driving experience. (using the premise of your second sentence applied to the first)

Sure but if FSD needs a teenager to physically monitor the car, TSLA is not worth the valuation.

A robotaxi is not like vibe coding multiple setups. You only get a split second in some cases to intervene.

Re: Ask HN: Is Programming as a Profession Cooked?

#33

Post by hahahahhaah » Mon, Jan 12, 2026, 11:35 PM UTC

savorypiano wrote: post #32

hahahahhaah wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The last 1% of FSD needs a teenager with 30 hours driving experience. (using the premise of your second sentence applied to the first)

Sure but if FSD needs a teenager to physically monitor the car, TSLA is not worth the valuation. A robotaxi is not like vibe coding multiple setups. You only get a split second in some cases to intervene.

Yes my point is your statement in my view should say:

The last 1% in FSD is an asymptotic challenge for AI to master. The last 1% in a CRUD app codebase is also an asymptotic challenge for AI to master.

Re: Ask HN: Is Programming as a Profession Cooked?

#34

Post by learningstud » Tue, Jan 13, 2026, 5:32 AM UTC

This was the sentiment for programmers well-versed in assembly languages (counting cycles, self-modifying code, story of Mel) when compilers came out, yet the advances in compiler technology enabled the creation of OCaml and Coq. What I think will actually happen is that a new breed of programmers with extensive mathematical background will start designing unprecedented software (or even digital circuits through high-level synthesis) that are almost correct by construction at a much faster rate with the combination of formal specification and AI coding. The field of computer aided design (CAD) will likely explode, and we will witness spaceships, nanobots, etc. being churned out at the rate of React websites. The whole computing field will become so high level that applied mathematics like optimal control, optimal transport, information geometry, etc. will become bread and butter for any programmer.

At the same time, there will be a new breed of artists that starts making games, movies, etc. with AI alone. We will witness a whole new form of artistic expression.