Amazon Web Services (AWS) CEO Matt Garman has made it clear: replacing junior developers with AI is not only shortsighted—it’s “one of the dumbest things” he’s ever heard.
Speaking on a recent podcast with Matthew Berman, Garman addressed concerns about the role of AI in software development and its potential impact on entry-level jobs. While industry leaders have warned that automation could put junior staff at risk, Garman strongly disagrees.
Junior Developers Remain Essential
Garman emphasized that junior developers are crucial for building long-term talent pipelines within organizations.
“They’re probably the least expensive employees you have, and they’re the most engaged with your AI tools,” he said. “How’s that going to work when ten years in the future you have no one that has learned anything?”
He argued that hiring graduates and teaching them core skills—problem decomposition, software design, and critical thinking—remains just as important today as it’s ever been. His perspective mirrors that of outgoing GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke, who earlier this year noted that younger developers are often “AI native” and bring fresh value to teams.
AI as a Positive Force
Rather than replacing staff, Garman sees AI as a way to improve workplace productivity and employee satisfaction. By automating repetitive or tedious tasks, he believes AI allows professionals to focus on the parts of their jobs they find most rewarding.
“There’s never been a more exciting time to be in technology,” Garman said. “I think people would love to spend more of their time on creative aspects—analysis, design, and problem-solving—rather than routine reporting or data entry.”
The AI Coding Hype
Garman also downplayed the current obsession with measuring AI’s success through the percentage of code it produces. Competitors like Microsoft and Google have touted figures showing that more than a quarter of their codebases now come from AI tools.
To Garman, that’s the wrong metric.
“Lines of code have never been a good measure of productivity,” he explained. “Fewer lines often mean better code. Bragging about how much AI writes misses the point.”
AI Adoption Inside AWS
Internally, AWS has seen rapid uptake of AI tools. Roughly 80% of its developers now use AI in some form, whether for writing unit tests, generating documentation, or speeding up coding tasks. That number, Garman noted, continues to rise each week.
The Takeaway
For Garman, the message is simple: AI should enhance, not replace. Enterprises that cut junior developers in favor of automation risk undermining their future talent pools while missing the real opportunity AI presents—to remove drudgery, empower teams, and unlock creativity.
