| Been writing code professionally for 8+ years. I’m now mass spending more time describing features in plain english than writing actual code. And the outputs are getting scary close to what I’d write myself. [link] [comments] |
main skill in software engineering in 2026 is knowing what to ask Claude, not knowing how to code. and I can’t decide if that’s depressing or just the next abstraction layer.
Reddit r/artificial / 4/8/2026
💬 OpinionSignals & Early TrendsIdeas & Deep AnalysisTools & Practical Usage
Key Points
- The post argues that, as AI coding assistants improve, a key software engineering skill in 2026 may shift from writing code to knowing how to describe problems and request the right outcomes from tools like Claude.
- The author reports spending more time writing plain-English feature specifications than producing traditional code themselves, with AI outputs becoming increasingly close to what they would write.
- The writer expresses uncertainty about whether this trend is demoralizing or simply the next level of abstraction in the software development workflow.
- Overall, it reflects an early trend that emphasizes prompt/problem framing as a core competency for engineers using LLM-based development tools.




