I'm tired of AI: Engineer considers farming as tech jobs face a bigger crisis

A software engineer's plan to quit coding for farming reflects growing anxiety over AI's impact on tech jobs. As automation advances, India's workforce faces changing hiring trends, evolving skill requirements, and uncertainty about future career opportunities.One engineer's plan to quit coding raises a bigger question about AI and job security (AI-generated image)New Delhi,Oct 26, 2026 12:37 ISTA software engineer with nearly a decade of experience has spent years building the systems that power the digital world. Now, as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly capable of writing code and designing software, he is wondering whether it is time to leave the industry altogether.In a Reddit post titled “I'm tired, boss”, published on October 24, the engineer said he was seriously considering farming or growing his own food because he feared there might not be many conventional jobs left in the next five to 10 years.“Everything is moving faster than the human brain can process,” he wrote, describing the pace of AI development as exhausting.What appears particularly unsettling is how his perception of the technology has changed. A year ago, he believed AI could write code but would still need experienced engineers to design systems and oversee complex projects. He now believes AI can perform those tasks too, sometimes better than humans. The post reflects a growing anxiety among technology professionals: if machines can increasingly perform the work that once justified years of training and experience, what happens to the people who built their careers around it? Screenshot of the Reddit post. INDIA'S SOFTWARE JOBS ARE UNDER PRESSURE TOOThe concern is not limited to online discussions. A report released in June cited Indeed data showing that software development job postings in India fell 12.3% over three months. The report also highlighted declines in postings across IT infrastructure, operations and support, and data and analytics. Meanwhile, graduates are also struggling to find entry-level jobs, and researchers examined how automation is affecting routine work traditionally assigned to freshers, including basic coding, document processing and backend tasks.These developments do not establish that AI alone is responsible for declining opportunities. However, they point to a changing employment landscape in which some traditional roles and entry-level pathways are under pressure.IS AI ELIMINATING JOBS OR CHANGING THEM?The picture is more complicated than outright job replacement. A report on emerging AI careers identified growing demand for specialised roles such as agentic AI developers, GenAI engineers and AI architects.The shift suggests that employers are increasingly looking for people who can build, integrate and manage AI systems, rather than simply perform tasks that these tools can automate.For software professionals, the challenge may therefore extend beyond learning another programming language. It could mean rethinking what expertise looks like when AI can handle more of the execution.The Reddit engineer's idea of turning to farming may be an expression of exhaustion rather than a concrete career plan. But his post captures a question confronting workers across industries: how do you plan a career when the skills that made you valuable yesterday may not be enough tomorrow?(Disclaimer: This story is based on a social media post. The details, including figures, background, and outcomes, have not been independently verified by India Today. The article is intended for informational purposes only, and readers are advised to exercise their own discretion before drawing conclusions or making decisions based on the content.)- Ends