AIThe case for software engineering as AI systems design
An essay argues that engineers’ work is shifting from writing code by hand to designing systems that let AI code correctly at scale, using tests, review agents and feedback loops.
TLDR
An essay quotes 37signals CTO David Heinemeier Hansson at Rails World on September 23, 2026, arguing that hand-written code is no longer economically productive for the vast majority of programmers at the vast majority of companies. It says Artemis engineers went from merging 2 pull requests a day in January to 16 by August, and cites the company’s CTO saying agents write every line of its platform while engineers design systems, set constraints and review outputs. The essay’s broader argument is that software engineering now centers on verification, feedback loops that learn from failures, and reusable tools and components.
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The case for software engineering as AI systems design
An essay argues that engineers’ work is shifting from writing code by hand to designing systems that let AI code correctly at scale, using tests, review agents and feedback loops.