The AI Brain Drain

It started with a tiny ask.

Just a quick regex. A command-line flag I couldn’t quite remember. A bit of boilerplate I didn’t feel like typing out. Totally harmless as I don’t want to waste my brain-calories unnecessarily.

Hey, that’s why we invented Stack Overflow.

So that’s why we invented Copilot and Cursor.

But here’s the thing. I used to know things. Like, actually know them. I had muscle memory for basic patterns. I could sketch out a feature while waiting for my coffee. Now? I find myself asking a chatbot how to map over an array like I’ve just come out of a coma.

I’m Not a Laggard. Honest

It’s not that I’m against the AI tools. God no. These models are miracle workers! They get me from blank file to working prototype faster than I’d like to admit, and help me with scripting tasks. 

The problem is what happens after that. I look at the code and think, “Neat”. And then promptly forget every step it took to get there. It’s like the AI’s helping me with homework and leaving me without preparation for the exam at the end of the semester.

Don’t even get me started on debugging code I didn’t fully write. Nothing makes you feel more like a script kiddie than staring at a 40-line function generated by your friendly local chatbot and realizing you have no idea what any of it does. But if it compiles what is the issue. Right? Right?

On My Way Down

You might well ruminate on a future where AI will take our jobs.

That isn’t my current concern. The problem for me is that it will quietly, sneakily take our skills, one autocomplete at a time. It’s like a memory leak but actually a leak from your memory.

It’s a slow burn. One day you’re simply letting autocomplete finish an array, and then one day you wake up and are unable to write a simple parser without a large language model holding your hand through each line.

We built these tools to boost our productivity. 

Maybe these new coding tools should include a warning. Use with caution. Side effects may include skill erosion, dependency, and existential dread.

Conclusion

It’s too late for me. Save yourself if you can.

Anyway, I’m off to ask ChatGPT why my pointer is undefined. Again.