2024–2025: The Era of AI

It’s safe to say that 2024 and 2025 are officially the years of AI.

In recent months, AI has expanded rapidly, advancing across multiple domains—text generation, code completion, image synthesis, music composition, video editing, search, assistance, and beyond. AI is no longer a niche technology but an integral part of our daily interactions, reshaping industries and workflows at an unprecedented pace.

With a vast array of AI-powered services, models, and tools now available, we have access to an entirely new level of automation and enhancement. Tasks that were once impossible, impractical, or restricted to a select few (due to financial constraints, technical expertise, or access to resources) are now within reach for nearly anyone.

Assistants and Competition

One of the most competitive areas in AI development is virtual assistants. There's significant media attention on their capabilities—some models excel at coding, others specialize in image generation, automation, text analysis, or complex reasoning. New models and enhanced versions are being released at an accelerated rate, each iteration promising better performance and new functionalities.

AI is now embedded into almost every aspect of our digital lives:

• Need to send a newsletter? There’s an AI tool for that
• Want to plan your schedule? There’s an AI tool for that
• Building a website? There’s an AI tool for that
• Evaluating products? There’s an AI tool for that
• Creating and selling an online course? Yes, there’s an AI tool for that too

Everything is AI-driven, AI-powered, AI-boosted. A lot of things stars to be "faked" using AI. And at the same time, many traditional roles are at risk of being replaced by these tools—at least according to decision-makers and industry leaders. Bill Gates, for example, has predicted that AI could replace most jobs within the next decade.

AI + Development: A Tool, Not a Replacement (Yet)

As a developer, I’ve witnessed firsthand how AI tools have integrated into our workflow, assisting us daily. They help streamline tasks, check documentation, validate code, and generate prototypes. However, they are not replacing our jobs—at least not yet.

Yes, AI can generate a functional website or service in minutes, even for someone with zero coding experience. With the right prompts, even complex applications can be built. But at what cost?

A person who relies solely on AI without understanding its output may struggle with long-term maintenance, debugging, or adapting the code to future needs. Sure, AI can refine its own work with additional prompts, but if you don’t understand the underlying structure, how do you ensure its reliability?

Does it matter? Well, that depends on your perspective:

• If your goal is just cash out, then AI works just fine
• If you’re building a product that requires long-term maintenance and accountability, then you need a deeper understanding of the technology behind it

Right now, AI serves as a powerful assistant—a reviewer, a knowledge base, a kind of “senior developer” for quick insights. But it’s not a true replacement for human expertise.

The Overlooked Potential of AI

What’s surprising is that while AI advancements in consumer products dominate the headlines, its most valuable applications often receive less attention.

For example, AI is making remarkable progress in fields like:

• Medicine: Identifying tumors and early signs of cancer from X-rays and CT scans.
• Security: Analyzing geological data to predict natural disasters or assess flood risks in urban areas.

These advancements have the potential to save lives, yet they are often overshadowed by more commercially appealing AI developments.

Take as example OpenAI’s latest image-generation model, for instance. The community’s response? A massive flood of requests to generate AI art mimicking Studio Ghibli’s style—leading to copyright debates rather than discussions about AI’s broader impact.

Where do we go from here? Not sure where this boat is going nor if I like the destination