AI Didn't Replace This Developer — a Full-Stack Mandate Did

Foreword

I vaguely remember that starting from December 2025, the Chinese internet began to see a flood of topics heavily promoting AI. This wave successfully broke out of tech circles, and our company was no exception. After senior management saw this information, they started pushing us to use AI more to improve efficiency.

Fast forward to March of this year (2026), our boss began having us leverage AI to transition to full-stack. Existing frontend developers were to learn backend, and backend developers were to learn frontend. One person handles an entire project, thereby increasing efficiency and bringing more revenue to the company.

Laid Off

Later on, we developed at this pace. Former colleagues and programmers I knew from the community all went full-stack too. Those who couldn't do it were laid off. While AI improved efficiency, the workload increased, and every day became more exhausting. Only the income remained unchanged.

Time came to yesterday (August 20th). My boss suddenly called me into a small meeting room and told me: "Our department's profits have decreased, and the company needs to cut the budget. We've decided to let you go. Tomorrow (August 21st), HR will discuss the specifics with you. Once you sign, you can leave."

Reflection

Under the big trend of AI, the living space for pure frontend/backend developers is shrinking. The job market is increasingly hiring for full-stack roles, and salaries have shrunk significantly. Perhaps the era that belonged exclusively to programmers is truly ending.

In this current era where AI prevails, what should those of us who have been knocked down do?

I still have no answer to this question...

Afterword

That concludes this article.

I am Magical Programmer, a frontend development engineer.

If you are interested in me, please visit my personal website to learn more.