David Abram on Why LLMs Cannot Replace Core Software Engineering Skills

Summary

Simon Willison shared a quote from developer David Abram's essay 'The Machine Didn't Take Your Craft,' which argues that the hardest parts of software engineering — understanding complex systems, debugging non-obvious issues, designing resilient architectures, and making long-term technical decisions — cannot be solved by LLMs. Abram acknowledges that LLMs can suggest code, help with boilerplate, and sometimes serve as a sounding board, but contends they do not truly understand the systems devel