Will AI Replace Developers with Natalie Kaminski

Welcome back to Founder Mode!

In this episode, we chatted with Natalie Kaminski. She is the founder and CEO of JetRockets. She teams up with technical and non-technical groups. They work together to build secure, real software. We explored AI's impact on building. We talked about what it can do today. We also asked if software engineers should worry about being replaced.

Natalie shared her view: AI is helpful, but it can't replace human skills. Not now. Maybe not ever.

5 Key Takeaways

1. AI Helps, But It's Not Intelligent

Natalie pointed out that most AI tools today aren't really smart. They use pattern recognition and predictions—not real thinking. They can't replace developers. This is true, especially for complex logic and real product needs.

2. Junior Devs Should Learn First, Not Rely on AI

At JetRockets, junior developers aren't allowed to use AI to write code. Why? Because if you don’t know what good code looks like, you won’t know when AI gets it wrong—and it often does.

3. AI Works Best on Boring Tasks

AI is excellent for tasks like:

• Writing tests
• Scaffolding boilerplate code
• Generating CRUD operations
• Naming variables

These are tasks most engineers don’t enjoy—and AI can speed them up.

4. Senior Engineers See Efficiency Gains (~30%)

Engineers using tools like Claude, Copilot, and Cursor can see productivity go up by 30%. AI makes them faster, not perfect. And still, every line of code is reviewed by a human before it goes to production.

5. Don’t Chase Hype—Focus on Long-Term Value

Natalie’s advice? Don’t get distracted by the hype. Software development is like running a marathon. It's all about endurance, not speed. Focus on solid fundamentals, not just fast outputs.

Final Thoughts

This episode reveals that AI won’t take over developers’ jobs anytime soon. Yes, AI tools are powerful—but only if you already know what you're doing. As Natalie said, having a calculator doesn’t make you a mathematician.

To build real products, we still need human thinking, problem-solving, and strategy. AI helps, but it’s only as smart as the person using it.

View AI as a tool to assist you, not as a substitute, in today’s software building. Use it to move faster—but don’t skip the basics.

🎧 Listen to Episode 32 here:

Will AI Replace Developers w... Nov 6 · Founder Mode 23:49   ​

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