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What Happened in 2024-2025

5 min read

Frontend

AI can now generate entire React components from a screenshot. That's not a threat — it's a tool. But only if you learn to use it.

Qa

AI-generated test suites went from 'interesting experiment' to 'default setting' at many companies in 2024.

Eng Manager

If you haven't had the 'AI and our team size' conversation with your VP yet, you're behind.

What Happened in 2024-2025

TL;DR

  • AI coding tools went from "neat demo" to "standard issue" in under 18 months.
  • Layoffs got rebranded as "AI efficiency gains" — some real, some corporate theater.
  • You weren't replaced by AI. You were replaced by fewer humans with AI. Big difference.

Let's skip the hype and talk about what actually changed.

This is not a history lesson. This is a damage report — and a treasure map.

The Timeline Nobody Talks About

Most AI articles start with "AI is transforming..." and end with "adapt or die." We're going to be more specific than that.

Here's what actually happened, quarter by quarter, that affects YOUR job:

Q1 2024: The Tools Got Serious

GitHub Copilot went from "autocomplete on steroids" to "writes entire functions." But that was just the warm-up.

Q2 2024: The Agents Arrived

Devin, the first "AI software engineer," made headlines. It wasn't great — but it proved a concept that scared a lot of people.

Q3-Q4 2024: The Layoffs Got a New Excuse

Companies that were already planning cuts found a new narrative: "AI efficiency." Some of it was real. A lot of it was cover.

Q1-Q2 2025: The New Normal

Cursor, Claude Code, and Copilot became standard issue. Not using AI tools started to feel like not using version control in 2010.

What This Means For You

Here's the thing most articles won't tell you: AI didn't replace developers. It replaced tasks.

The developers who got laid off weren't replaced by AI. They were replaced by fewer developers using AI.

That's a crucial distinction. And it's the foundation of everything in this course.

Quick Check

What actually happened in 2024-2025?

Do This Next

  1. Skim your last week's calendar. Count how many tasks an AI assistant could have accelerated. Don't panic — just notice.
  2. If you haven't tried Cursor, Copilot, or Claude Code yet: Install one this week. One tool. 30 minutes. We'll build from there.