A techie ranted about how artificial intelligence had not reduced his workload but had instead raised expectations, leaving him feeling like he had to accomplish far more in the same amount of time.

The post was shared on Reddit's r/developersIndia forum under the title, "Anyone else feel we're having to work more due to AI?"

In the post, the developer compared his work life before and after the widespread adoption of AI tools. Reflecting on the period between 2021 and 2024, he said projects moved at a much slower pace.

Building a basic CRUD API, he explained, typically involved separate days for scoping, writing technical specifications, reviewing them, development, testing, pull request reviews and production deployment.

He added that he managed four interns and often avoided hands-on coding because he was occupied with supervising them.

According to him, things changed significantly from 2025 onwards. He wrote that many of the inefficiencies that once padded software development timelines had disappeared. Tasks that previously took several days were now expected to be completed, tested and deployed within just one or two days.

He also claimed that junior developers now completed assignments much faster with the help of AI, meaning he spent far more time reviewing their work while also being expected to contribute substantial amounts of coding himself.

Summing up his experience, he remarked that AI was "ruining the carefully designed inefficiencies of the tech industry" by making developers work more for the same pay.

Take a look at the post here:

The post sparked a discussion among fellow developers, many of whom said they had noticed similar changes in their workplaces.

Several users admitted that while AI had undoubtedly improved efficiency, it had also led to tighter deadlines and heavier workloads.

Others argued that although AI could speed up implementation, human oversight remained essential for maintaining reliability, making engineers responsible for reviewing an ever-growing amount of work.

Many also described the current pace of software development as increasingly exhausting, saying projects now felt like a constant race to finish one assignment and immediately move on to the next.

Some added that the rapid pace left them feeling more replaceable, as AI blurred the distinction between productivity gains and rising workplace expectations.

- Ends

Published By:

Yashna Talwar

Published On:

Jul 21, 2026 19:34 IST