Coding skills alone may not be enough in the future

The landscape of software development is rapidly evolving, with AI-assisted coding, or Vibe-Coding, gaining significant traction. According to the Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2025, a substantial portion of software developers now utilize AI tools, yet a considerable number express distrust in the technology. One developer shared with Business Insider that they felt unable to "jump on the AI train" and have since left the industry, while others find AI support frees them up for more creative tasks.

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I can simply not jump on the AI train.

This shift occurs against a backdrop of declining demand for software developers in Austria. The AMS JobBarometer reported a sharp drop in job postings for software developers from approximately 60,000 in 2022 to just over 21,000 last year, influenced by the current economic situation. Despite this decrease in absolute numbers, the field continues to represent a "very high proportion" of all job advertisements, and the three-year trend through 2028 is projected positively by the AMS.

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Whoever can only program will have a harder time in the job market in the future.

Experts emphasize that the core requirements for software developers are changing. Robert Pucher, head of the Master's program in Software Engineering at FH Technikum Wien, states that simply knowing how to code will no longer suffice in the job market. Instead, the focus is shifting towards higher-level skills. Thomas Pock, Dean of Computer Science and Biomedical Engineering at TU Graz, explains that future roles will increasingly demand the ability to formulate requirements, design systems, assess solution quality, and critically question AI-generated code. Experienced developers are expected to collaborate more closely with AI-powered tools and agentic systems, AI that can make independent decisions to complete tasks.

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In the future, it will be even more important to formulate requirements, design systems, assess the quality of solutions, and critically question AI-generated results.

Claudia Plant, Vice Dean of Computer Science at the University of Vienna, sees the widespread integration of AI across professions as an opportunity. She notes that computer science knowledge is becoming essential in diverse fields like medicine, climate research, and archaeology, opening up new career paths. Meanwhile, Pucher and Pock stress that foundational knowledge remains critical. They argue that in an era of powerful AI tools, a deep understanding of fundamental principles, algorithms, and programming is more important than ever, alongside essential soft skills like management and teamwork, which have long been recognized as vital components of software engineering beyond solitary coding.

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Experienced developers will increasingly work with AI-supported tools or agentic systems.