# **Losing Interest in Coding in the Age of AI**
Recently, I saw a post on Reddit that resonated deeply:
> *“Because of AI and all those people brainwashed by AI, I’ve completely lost interest in my profession.”*
The author — a back-end engineer — described how it took only **two months** to go from:
> *“I want to work at this company for the rest of my life”*
> to
> *“Should I change industries?”*
At first this might sound exaggerated, but this sentiment reflects a **growing anxiety** felt by many developers today.
---
## **A Furious Monologue from a Frustrated Programmer**
**From Passionate to Burned Out in Two Months**
One day, a senior executive announced: *Everyone must “chat with AI.”*
They even started **tracking AI usage frequency** — and for the first time in my career, I ended up on a “blacklist,” despite no prior performance issues.
When I protested, my manager advised: *“Just ask AI random, useless questions.”*
Soon after came the *Vibe Coding* initiative:
- **Encourage mistakes** so AI can fix them
- **Trust AI over human expertise**
- **Sacrifice quality for speed**
All while working at a **medical company**. Terrifying.
---
### **Quality Decline and Changing Metrics**
- Some colleagues introduce **double-digit bugs per task** — yet face zero consequences.
- I skip AI for a week? I’m labelled a “bad employee.”
- Résumé filters are now gamified to *please AI screening systems*.
- Most jobs I see are AI tool-focused — many will be obsolete in a couple of years.
What I love most in programming is **thinking and problem-solving** — but these changes make me feel I’m **falling out of love** with my craft.
Every day feels like living in *The Truman Show*.
---
## **Community Reactions: AI Isn’t Making Work Easier**
### Common Complaints
> “AI autocomplete is like a noisy coworker, interrupting me every time I type.”
> “I turned off AI suggestions because they disrupt my thought process.”
> “AI-generated code looks fine at first, but maintaining it is a disaster.”
Many believe AI hasn’t reduced workload — it’s just shifted the burden from **creators** to **reviewers**.
**In the ‘Vibe Coding’ era:**
- AI = first draft
- Humans = editors
Others feel AI code is sometimes *better* than outsourced work, but note the same recurring problem: **flashy delivery, poor maintainability**.
---
## **A Shift in Skills: From Writing Code to Reviewing Code**
Some argue the developer’s professional threshold is shifting toward:
- **Code review**
- **Abstraction**
- **Design**
- **Debugging**
One sharp comment summed it up:
> If you can write quality code but can’t identify bad code, that’s not AI’s fault — it’s a lack of review skills.
> Reviewing code is a skill like writing it, and it can be trained. Ask yourself: *“If I were to write this, how would I implement it?”*
**I’m a programmer, not a “rubber stamp” for Copilot**
---
## **The Danger of Mandatory AI Policies**
A response blog post warned:
- **Voluntary AI usage** is fine — mandatory usage is risky.
- Being evaluated based on **AI interaction counts** diminishes real contributions.
- Over-reliance can reduce a developer’s role to a mere **approver of AI output**.
> And when things go wrong? The responsibility is yours — not Copilot’s, not ChatGPT’s.
> If programming becomes “approving” rather than “creating,” we lose both a career and a craft.
---
## **The Rational Approach: Coexisting With AI**
Not all developers are pessimistic. One Hacker News commenter suggested:
- Use AI to **write better tests, documentation, and standardized code**
- Implement **review safeguards**:
- Pre-commit hooks
- Lints
- Structured code reviews
The key: **Work with AI without becoming its caretaker.**
---
## **Discussion Questions**
- Is your company enforcing *mandatory* AI usage?
- Will AI-assisted programming diminish or reshape a developer's value?
- If AI can deliver faster than you, will you still love programming?
---
## **Constructive AI Integration: A Case Study**
Platforms like [AiToEarn官网](https://aitoearn.ai/) show how AI can be integrated *thoughtfully*:
- AI **content generation** + **multi-platform publishing**
- Analytics + [AI模型排名](https://rank.aitoearn.ai)
- Monetization without sacrificing **craft** and **quality**
Douyin, Kwai, WeChat, Bilibili, Rednote, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, YouTube, Pinterest, X — all from one workflow.
---
### **Final Takeaway**
The real challenge isn’t AI itself — it’s **how** we integrate AI into work:
- **Respect expertise**
- **Preserve quality**
- **Sustain engagement**
- **Avoid blind policy-driven mandates**
---
**References:**
- [Reddit Thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/cscareerquestions/comments/1o6vjv0/completely_losing_interest_in_the_career_due_to/)
- [Response Blog](https://prahladyeri.github.io/blog/2025/10/i-am-a-programmer.html)
