Megha, do we really need to learn GenAI?
Last week of 2025.
The question was asked by an SDE from my linkedin network with 8+ yrs of experience.
I was worried.
There are still experienced SDEs with zero GenAI knowledge.
Unbelievable, but true.
I started thinking, where to start the answer.
The short answer is simple “Yes”.
But that will not help.
So I continued the conversation by asking “Tell me what do you know about GenAI”.
He answered “GenAI is all LLMs and we have to build LLMs”.
Here I understood where the basic question is coming from.
– Using GenAI Vs Building GenAI
– Writing prompts Vs Writing Agents
– Improving productivity Vs Adding new GenAI features
Ask yourself these questions
1. Task A takes 1 week, can I do it in a day?
2. Task B is repetitive, I still can write a script in 5hrs. However if I challenge myself, can I write the same script in 5min?
This is going to be the life of SDE in 2026.
If you want to answer both the questions with a “Yes”, then you need to learn “How to *use* GenAI tools”.
“Use” different tools available in the market to increase productivity.
Some examples are GitHub Copilot, Gemini, ChatGPT that you must have heard of.
Check which tools are authorized to use in your org and start using them.
Begin with one tool, for example GitHub Copilot.
Write basic prompts for any work you do so that you can validate the output easily.
Few examples are
Fix errors in your code
Explain legacy code block
Write a script to take out reports and insights from data
Once you understand one tool usage, and how to write prompts, you should be able evaluate other similar tools.
As of now there is no tool that is perfect. Therefore you may have to analyze and adapt a new tool frequently.
Few more questions you need to ask yourself
** Can you trust the output? How will you validate?
** When do you need human validation?
** Can you use this tool with sensitive data?
** What security measures do you need to take while using these tools/code generated with them?
My message to all the SDEs
“Learn how to use GenAI tools to increase productivity in 2026″.
Someone else is building them.
Learn foundational elements, however you don’t need to build LLMs.
You never know, your curiosity and learning may lead you there though.
If you still feel lost after self learning, go for a structured training.
In 2026, take a challenge to do all the boring tasks with GenAI. It can be a long pending tech debt or a script that you could never write due to hectic schedule.
Happy New Year!
#ThoughtLeadership
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