Can India's Coders Survive AI?

Stability AI CEO Emad Mostaque predicts that most of India's outsourced coders will lose their jobs in the next two years due to the increasing impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on software development processes. He emphasized that AI can now facilitate software development with significantly fewer human resources. Mostaque stated that outsourced coders up to level three programmers in India are at the highest risk of losing their jobs. India houses more than 5 million software programmers, making it a preferred location for companies outsourcing back-office jobs and other roles. Still, these programmers are at risk due to the advancements in AI tools like ChatGPT. Mostaque restated his earlier prediction that traditional coders will be obsolete within five years due to AI's increasing role in tasks like bug testing, unit testing, and ideation. He acknowledged the emergence of AI "co-pilots," suggesting that while classical programming skills may become less critical, the changing landscape will create a demand for different skills in software development.