2025 Year-End Reflection for Developers: AI Hype, Layoffs, and What’s Next
Develpreneur: Become a Better Developer and Entrepreneur
Release Date: 12/30/2025
2025 Year-End Reflection for Developers: AI Hype, Layoffs, and What’s Next
Develpreneur: Become a Better Developer and Entrepreneur
It’s New Year’s Eve-Eve, and instead of recording from our usual virtual setups, we did something we’ve talked about for years: we hit record in the same room. If you’re watching on YouTube, you can actually see us together. If you’re listening on audio, you’ll just have to trust us—this one was in-person. In this special episode of Building Better Developers (our Building Better Foundations season), we keep it simple: a Year-End Reflection for Developers. What are we ready to leave behind from this year? What do we want to carry into the next one? And what’s the reality...
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info_outlineIt’s New Year’s Eve-Eve, and instead of recording from our usual virtual setups, we did something we’ve talked about for years: we hit record in the same room. If you’re watching on YouTube, you can actually see us together. If you’re listening on audio, you’ll just have to trust us—this one was in-person.
In this special episode of Building Better Developers (our Building Better Foundations season), we keep it simple: a Year-End Reflection for Developers. What are we ready to leave behind from this year? What do we want to carry into the next one? And what’s the reality behind the loudest tech conversations?
A Year-End Reflection for Developers isn’t about perfection. It’s about clarity—keeping what worked, dropping what didn’t, and starting the next year lighter.
Year-End Reflection for Developers: What We’re Ready to Leave Behind
We opened the discussion with a question you can ask your team, your friends, or yourself:
What are you ready to see go away?
For Rob, it was the endless, extreme framing around AI. Not AI itself—he uses it and enjoys it—but the constant “AI will save everything” or “AI will destroy everything” energy that dominated so many conversations this year.
The truth is, we’re still going to talk about AI next year. The goal is to move the conversation toward reality: what it can do well, what it can’t, and how to use it responsibly without acting like it’s magic—or doom.
Year-End Reflection for Developers on AI Hype vs Reality
A big part of this Year-End Reflection for Developers was dialing down the panic and dialing up practical thinking.
AI tools can absolutely help developers move faster. They can help summarize, brainstorm, refactor, and even unblock you when you’re stuck. But the hype has pushed people into extremes, and extremes aren’t useful when you’re shipping software.
If you used AI this year, you already know the real story: sometimes it’s brilliant, and sometimes it confidently hands you nonsense.
Use AI like a tool, not a truth machine. A Year-End Reflection for Developers should include one rule: verify before you trust.
Year-End Reflection for Developers on “AI Caused the Layoffs”
Michael took the AI conversation in a different direction: big businesses blaming AI for layoffs.
Yes, AI will impact jobs over time. But what we’re seeing right now often looks more like companies correcting after the COVID-era “no hire / no fire” period. In other words, the bottom line is driving decisions, and AI is becoming a convenient headline.
If you’re cutting roles for financial reasons, just say that. Don’t hide behind buzzwords.
That honesty matters—not just for employees, but for the industry. Developers don’t benefit from fear-based narratives. We benefit from transparency and real strategy.
Year-End Reflection for Developers: Studio Audience Takeaways
Because we had an in-room setup, we passed the mic to a few of our “studio audience” members.
Ian shared the positive side of his year: getting hands-on experience in Agile and learning what it’s like to build alongside a team of developers on a large project. It had hangups, and it ran longer than expected—but that’s real work, and real growth.
Wesley echoed the burnout around AI buzzwords and made a strong point: when we say “AI,” we need to be specific. A lot of what people mean right now is “large language models,” and lumping everything under “AI” only adds confusion. He also called out how hype can warp markets—like hardware prices skyrocketing when everyone jumps on the trend.
Year-End Reflection for Developers: Less Fear, More People
Natalie brought the most human answer of the night: she wants less fear.
Less fear, less uncertainty, less constant tension—and more remembering that we’re all in this together. That hit home, because a Year-End Reflection for Developers isn’t just about tech. It’s about how we work, how we treat each other, and how we show up next year.
Year-End Reflection for Developers: What’s Next
We closed with a simple message: go enjoy the next few days. Get out. Socialize. Be kind. Let go of the fear and anger where you can.
We’ll see you in 2026.
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