Companies are Rehiring Developers, what about Juniors?

A veteran developer reacts to news about companies rehiring software engineers after over-relying on AI. Key points: Gartner predicts 50% of companies that laid off workers due to AI will rehire by 2027; AI tools work best with tight context and structured prompts; the '80% wall' problem affects those who lack software design fundamentals; writing code is not the same as developing software. The author argues AI is just another abstraction layer in a long history of productivity-boosting technologies. For junior developers, the advice is to focus on AI tooling, system-level thinking, and design patterns rather than boilerplate coding or chasing FAANG jobs — small businesses represent the real opportunity.