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SQL didn't eliminate programming jobs — it just changed what those jobs looked like.
Hipp concludes that automation through SQL shifted the nature of programmers' work rather than making programmers obsolete. ✦ AI generated
D. Richard Hipp · Simon Willison's Weblog · 2026-07-29 · original ↗
That didn't mean programmers went away. It just meant the job changed a little bit.
Read full article ↗excerpt · fair-use quotation
- ·Automation through SQL didn't make programmers obsolete
- ·Programmers did not go away
- ·The job changed, not disappeared
- ·SQL changed what programming jobs looked like
- ·The nature of programmers' work was transformed
- ·D. Richard Hipp: job 'changed a little bit'
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supports → The job loss narrative around AI is a scam — the media and politicians pushing it will never admit they were wrong, but the data shows AI is creating far more jobs than it destroys, with displacement rather than loss.David Friedberg · All-In Podcastsupports → AI will not eliminate jobs because it automates tasks, not the purpose of a job — when the task is automated, the professional can fulfill more of the purpose, which increases demand and hiring.Jensen Huang · No Priors