99% of People Think AI Can Replace Developers - They're Dead Wrong

Let me be honest with you - if you think AI is going to replace developers anytime soon, you're either: Not a developer, Or you're new and started consuming too many headlines and not enough reality. Well, I've spent the last 5 years writing complex code, building tons of websites, and then selling them to multiple clients. Even I've worked with multiple startups on some of the complex programming stuff. And I don't think it will be that easy. Nitin, you don't know how AI is upgrading - there are multiple AI tools that can build dream apps for you. Well, for the last 1.5 years, I've been using most of the AI tools to build in a faster and more productive way, even started automating some of my tedious tasks, and even sold the AI made products to real customers. And it was only possible because I had the expertise to go through the code, modify it, and solve the bugs that AI wasn't able to. To give you more idea, I've been using AI to write code since the early days. I have been using ChatGPT and Claude literally for the past 1.5 years. I was one of the first to use CodeRabbit AI to save time on code reviews. I also started using AI-powered tools like Cursor AI, Lovable, and others as soon as they launched. But even then, whenever someone says that "AI is going to replace developers", I actually laugh at them. Here's why. Note: This post is from my newsletter, AI Made Simple. You can subscribe for free to read more posts like this. Developing websites & apps is not just about writing code I don't know why the creators on the internet simply hyped that AI can generate code means it can build high-end websites and apps. Well, it's not the case. I actually have a business to develop websites and apps for businesses, and I've been doing it for more than 3 years now. And the process isn't just simple to write code and build products. First of all, it needs the knowledge of fundamentals, a full-proof planning based on what the client wants, and then building mockups, wireframes, and UI designs. And when the client confirms the designs, I need to write code to build the product, and then have to test it out, deploy, and then further test it out. And finally, I have to maintain it, solve bugs if something happens, scale further, and more. Sure, we can use Uizard or other AI tools to generate UI designs, and then use ChatGPT to generate code, and then use CodeRabbit AI to do the code review. But that's all - after that, a developer will be needed to fix the issues and move the process forward. Even there is a need for a product manager to understand the problem, plan about the app, collaborate with stakeholders, architect scalable systems, and guide through the process of testing, debugging, deployment, and maintenance. Nitin, we can add data for literally everything to AI, and it will do it. Let's be real, you can't just put all your data into AI tools - they're not fully safe or trustworthy yet. Even think about how much data you would need to feed to AI to understand the upcoming problems, how the AI will know the user's problem, how to apply multiple strategies to grow further, and more. It will simply make the process more complex. Indeed, AI knows how to connect lines of code and build a basic or slightly advanced app, but it doesn't know: how to structure systems for reliability, uptime, or scale. how to mentor a team or make roadmap decisions. how to solve complicated security vulnerabilities, scalability problems, performance issues, and more. You can't copy-paste your way to a production-ready app Let me be honest - even today, I don't completely trust AI tools and other popular AI-powered platforms. Since they can't create an end product for me. No doubt, AI can generate boilerplate code, create CRUD apps, simple scripts, maybe even generate a full-page UI if you give it a well-crafted prompt. But try to ask it to build a production-grade SaaS with authentication, secure payment integration, scale-ready architecture, edge-case handling, clean data models, and a DevOps pipeline. It will surely start hallucinating and provide code that won't work. Yes, the code will be full of bugs, inconsistencies, and missing logic. You won't even be able to deploy it without rewriting most of it. Well, I've tried it multiple times, so I know the result. Let me give you an example. Suppose you wrote a number of prompts to create an app using LLMs. Now you've got multiple files in your VS Code, and when you run it, the app runs - but it doesn't work as expected. What will you do? Upload each and every file to the LLM and ask it to find the error? Well, that will only make the process more complicated and tedious. And chances are, it'll start hallucinating. Even worse, imagine trying to connect your app to AWS, GCP, or Azure by just following AI's steps - without really understanding how things work in the background. You might waste money on servers,

Apr 20, 2025 - 13:22

99% of People Think AI Can Replace Developers - They're Dead Wrong

Let me be honest with you - if you think AI is going to replace developers anytime soon, you're either:

Not a developer,
Or you're new and started consuming too many headlines and not enough reality.

Well, I've spent the last 5 years writing complex code, building tons of websites, and then selling them to multiple clients.

Even I've worked with multiple startups on some of the complex programming stuff.

And I don't think it will be that easy.

Nitin, you don't know how AI is upgrading - there are multiple AI tools that can build dream apps for you.

Well, for the last 1.5 years, I've been using most of the AI tools to build in a faster and more productive way, even started automating some of my tedious tasks, and even sold the AI made products to real customers.

And it was only possible because I had the expertise to go through the code, modify it, and solve the bugs that AI wasn't able to.

To give you more idea, I've been using AI to write code since the early days.

I have been using ChatGPT and Claude literally for the past 1.5 years.
I was one of the first to use CodeRabbit AI to save time on code reviews.
I also started using AI-powered tools like Cursor AI, Lovable, and others as soon as they launched.

But even then, whenever someone says that "AI is going to replace developers", I actually laugh at them.

Here's why.

Note: This post is from my newsletter, AI Made Simple. You can subscribe for free to read more posts like this.

Developing websites & apps is not just about writing code

I don't know why the creators on the internet simply hyped that AI can generate code means it can build high-end websites and apps.

Well, it's not the case.

I actually have a business to develop websites and apps for businesses, and I've been doing it for more than 3 years now.

And the process isn't just simple to write code and build products.

First of all, it needs the knowledge of fundamentals, a full-proof planning based on what the client wants, and then building mockups, wireframes, and UI designs.

And when the client confirms the designs, I need to write code to build the product, and then have to test it out, deploy, and then further test it out. And finally, I have to maintain it, solve bugs if something happens, scale further, and more.

Sure, we can use Uizard or other AI tools to generate UI designs, and then use ChatGPT to generate code, and then use CodeRabbit AI to do the code review.

But that's all - after that, a developer will be needed to fix the issues and move the process forward.

Even there is a need for a product manager to understand the problem, plan about the app, collaborate with stakeholders, architect scalable systems, and guide through the process of testing, debugging, deployment, and maintenance.

Nitin, we can add data for literally everything to AI, and it will do it.

Let's be real, you can't just put all your data into AI tools - they're not fully safe or trustworthy yet.

Even think about how much data you would need to feed to AI to understand the upcoming problems, how the AI will know the user's problem, how to apply multiple strategies to grow further, and more.

It will simply make the process more complex.

Indeed, AI knows how to connect lines of code and build a basic or slightly advanced app, but it doesn't know:

how to structure systems for reliability, uptime, or scale.
how to mentor a team or make roadmap decisions.
how to solve complicated security vulnerabilities, scalability problems, performance issues, and more.

You can't copy-paste your way to a production-ready app

Let me be honest - even today, I don't completely trust AI tools and other popular AI-powered platforms.

Since they can't create an end product for me.

No doubt, AI can generate boilerplate code, create CRUD apps, simple scripts, maybe even generate a full-page UI if you give it a well-crafted prompt.

But try to ask it to build a production-grade SaaS with authentication, secure payment integration, scale-ready architecture, edge-case handling, clean data models, and a DevOps pipeline.

It will surely start hallucinating and provide code that won't work.

Yes, the code will be full of bugs, inconsistencies, and missing logic. You won't even be able to deploy it without rewriting most of it.

Well, I've tried it multiple times, so I know the result.

Let me give you an example.

Suppose you wrote a number of prompts to create an app using LLMs. Now you've got multiple files in your VS Code, and when you run it, the app runs - but it doesn't work as expected. What will you do? Upload each and every file to the LLM and ask it to find the error?

Well, that will only make the process more complicated and tedious. And chances are, it'll start hallucinating.

Even worse, imagine trying to connect your app to AWS, GCP, or Azure by just following AI's steps - without really understanding how things work in the background.

You might waste money on servers, set things up the wrong way, or even break something you don't know how to fix.

AI isn't taking dev jobs - it's actually replacing the lazy ones

Now comes the most important part.

You see, I've built a business around developing websites and apps. And yes, I use AI to make the entire process simpler, faster, and way more efficient.

But here's the truth - I don't believe AI is going to replace me. In fact, it's going to help me grow further.

Just like senior developers and programmers who have deep domain knowledge - they're not getting replaced either. Why? Because they understand what they're doing.

Let's be honest- you can't trust AI to handle real-world payment integration, scale a high-end app to production, or manage complex cloud infrastructure without a skilled developer guiding the process.

That's exactly why I believe AI won't kill development jobs. It'll simply reveal who was faking it all along and replace them.

To be more precise, if your job consists of mindless tasks like:

Copying code from Stack Overflow or generating entire code from LLMs
Googling how to center a div even after a year of experience
Building cookie-cutter CRUD apps

Then yes, AI will outperform you, and you will even get replaced.

But if you:

Understand systems and architecture
Solve problems from first principles
Communicate well with technical and non-technical folks
Write clean, scalable, documented code and use AI to make the process faster
Lead projects, not just code for them

Then you're not just safe - you're actually valuable. You're irreplaceable.

And no matter how much AI can grow you will still remain important in the tech domain.

AI can actually make you unstoppable

I'm specially talking about programmers who have started using AI, and they are never scared of AI.

They've realized that: AI won't replace me but a developer who uses AI better than I do… might.

And that's the reason they're learning:

How to prompt better and use LLMs strategically
How to combine AI tools (e.g. Copilot + Cursor + GPT-4 + custom scripts)
How to turn their knowledge into products (like APIs, tools, courses, or SaaS)

And here's what these programmers are doing differently:

1. They are automating boring tasks.

Things like replying to emails, writing reports, entering data, or making simple or a bit advanced designs - AI can do all that faster and better. That way, they can focus on what really matters: building cool stuff, planning smart moves, or closing big deals.

2. They save time thanks to AI, and learn what others avoid.

Most people simply write code. They just scratch the surface and stop.

But the ambitious ones? They are using AI to save time, and use that time saved to go deep. They learn advanced tools and tricks others ignore - and that gives them a huge advantage.

3. They do 10x more with the same time.

AI doesn't just save time - it helps you do way more. It's not here to take your job. It's here to make you stronger and faster.

The truth is simple - if you're eager to learn and open to change, AI will help you grow fast and stay ahead of others.

But if you avoid it, keep doing things the old way, or ignore how powerful it is, you'll for sure fall behind.

Hope you like it.

That's it - thanks.

If you’ve found this post helpful, make sure to subscribe to my newsletter, AI Made Simple where I dive deeper into practical AI strategies for everyday people.