IT Specialists' Anxiety Over AI: Fresh Survey Data
Surveys among 277 specialists show a shift in AI perception: among IT workers, the share of calm individuals grew to 49.7% from 10% in 2023, while panic dropped to 7.8% from 40%. Moderate anxiety remains at 42.5%. Outside IT, 62.9% are not worried at all. This reflects adaptation to tools like ChatGPT and a realization of their limitations.
Data was collected in the author's Telegram channel, split between IT (153 people) and other fields (124). Comparison with 2023 highlights a mirror reversal of sentiments: unmet predictions of rapid adoption and visible model limits reduce stress.
Forecasts on AI Impact Timing for the Labor Market
Out of 262 respondents, 62.8% in IT believe AI will not take jobs or not within the next 10 years. In other fields, optimism is higher — 72.8%. Short terms (less than 5 years) were chosen by less than 22% of IT specialists.
- Less than a year: 1.5%
- 1–3 years: 5.4%
- 3–5 years: 14.9%
- 5–10 years: 15.5%
- More than 10 years: 62.8%
Skepticism contrasts with media hype. The author notes the natural career cycle of a coder (20–25 years until 40–45 age), where cognitive decline often displaces AI as a risk factor for specialists 30+.
Risk Minimization Strategies
261 respondents revealed approaches to anxiety. Passive strategies dominate: 28.7% do not worry and do nothing, 10% worry without action. Active measures are fragmented.
- Use AI in work: 38.7%
- Invest (stocks, real estate): 6.5%
- Move to real sector: 4.2%
- Develop sustainable activity: 5.7%
- Freelance/parallel work: 1.1%
- Own business: 1.5%
- Management: 3.4%
Most integrate AI as a tool, reducing fear of replacement. This confirms the transition from perceiving AI as a threat to a routine utility.
Private Fears of Developers
Consultations reveal repeating patterns. First — skill degradation: under KPIs, employers require generating code with AI with minimal checking, leading to forgetting basics. Knowledge is restored, but self-esteem drops in an unstable market.
Second — AI code support: junior developers generate, seniors clean up bugs and tech debt. This increases load on experienced specialists, undermining motivation.
These concerns do not dominate surveys but are frequent in practice. They signal risks not of full automation, but fragmented: loss of depth in coding amidst volume growth.
What Matters
- Anxiety decreased: 50% of IT specialists are calm or moderately concerned vs 90% in 2023.
- Long-term horizon: 63% expect changes in 10+ years or never.
- Passive majority: 39% actively use AI, others observe.
- Coder career cycle (20–25 years) matters more than AI for 30+ specialists.
- Skill risks: KPIs on AI lead to expertise degradation without full replacement.
Conclusions for Middle/Senior Developers
Survey data and practice show stabilization: AI has become a utility, not a revolution. For seniors, focus on niche expertise and architecture, where code generation yields to systemic thinking. Juniors risk degradation without learning discipline. Media noise about imminent apocalypse is not confirmed by real sentiments — the market is adapting evolutionarily.
— Editorial Team
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