It's time to end the Programming Priesthood
Computer programmers on the cusp of the Generative AI revolution are in a position eerily similar to that of data processing professionals at the dawn of the timesharing revolution.
A Flashback to the 1960s
In the early days of computing, programmers encoded instructions onto punched cards and handed them off to a dedicated data processing team—the gatekeepers who controlled access to the machine. This division created a priesthood of specialists who alone could "commune" with the computer.
But some programmers rebelled against this hierarchy, envisioning a world where they could access the computer directly. The push for timesharing and later personal computing was a technological and ideological revolution.
Writings of the time framed the struggle in religious terms: data processing specialists were high priests, their computer rooms were the holy of holies, and computing was an esoteric rite conducted through Blinken lights and printouts. The revolution's goal? Automate the priesthood out of existence.
And it worked. The rise of personal computing dismantled the data processing monopoly, and programmers took their place as the new keepers of the Machine.
The 2025 Parallel
Fast-forward to today, and programmers may now be the ones inside the temple, guarding access to the Machine God. To many AI enthusiasts, programming languages and much of traditional Computer Science seem like unnecessary complexity—a barrier to direct interaction with the machine.
Why should anyone need to translate their ideas into an archaic, non-vernacular language? Why must they spend years in computational seminary just to issue instructions?
The AI revolution has its own prophets, just as the timesharing movement had John McCarthy, J.C.R. Licklider, and Fernando Corbató. Billions of dollars and an army of entrepreneurs are pushing forward, determined to eliminate the intermediary role of human programmers.
It's too soon to say who the Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, or Bill Gates of AI will be, but one thing is clear: the age of human programmers is at the beginning of the end.
A New Order Will Arise
The human desire for direct access to the Machine is eternal. The automation capabilities of LLMs and AI agents are powerful enough to erode the privileges of traditionally trained programmers. Eventually, a new order will emerge, and a new priesthood will form around AI systems.
There will be new ways to commune with the Machine, new theological conflicts over AI alignment and interpretability, and new sects and denominations of computational thought.
My Perspective
Like many programmers, I love the etymology and comparative linguistics of programming languages and the way human ingenuity has layered abstractions and paradigms upon them. I will always find joy in algorithmic thinking, coding, and language design as a hobby, even as the world moves forward. I will remain available for flamewars upon request.
But when it comes to my career, I must look ahead. I want to live in a world where humanity augments its intellect and automates away drudgery. I want natural language computing to feel as effortless as saying:
"Tea, Earl Grey, Hot."
Still, I sometimes feel a scarcity mindset creeping in. What happens when programming is no longer an elite skill? How will I adapt when the financial privileges of programming expertise fade? I remind myself that the Earth shall abide. My mind and my hands will continue to do good work.
If programmers in 2025 are like computer operators in 1965, we must resist the temptation to defend the old priesthood. Instead, we should learn from and integrate with those on the other side of the window—the outsiders knocking for access.
History teaches us that they will win. The only question is whether we fight to protect our place in the old order or embrace the revolution and find new ways to build things for humanity.