Software engineering is about managing complexity
This article argues that software engineering is fundamentally about managing complexity and making architectural trade-offs rather than just writing code. It suggests that while AI excels at code generation, the human role remains critical in defining system constraints and business-aligned solutions.
Why it matters
It provides a critical perspective on the evolving role of software engineers in an era where AI tools are increasingly capable of handling basic programming tasks.
There is a misunderstanding about software engineering that AI is making increasingly visible: we tend to confuse writing code with building software.
There is some overlap in certain aspects, but they’re not the same thing.
Writing code means translating an idea into instructions a computer can execute. Building software means deciding which instructions should exist in the first place, how they should interact, which constraints matter, what’s the cost of the decisions, which tradeoffs can be considered acceptable, and how the resulting system can evolve without collapsing under its own constraints and limitations.
Let’s start from a basic premise: AI is an essential tool because it is remarkably good at the first problem.
The second is where software engineering actually begins.
Consider a relatively ordinary engineering requirement.
We need to process incoming events and update some data.
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