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July 2026 Retro

AI didn't take my job. It took the proof that I can do it.

Hello, loyal reader.

I hope you didn't forget about me. A lot has happened since I last wrote an update:

  • Fatherhood is imminent.
  • My anchor freelance client has reduced my dev hours to zero.
  • I picked up hand-coding again.
  • Indie hacking is dead.

Girl dad

My wife and I are expecting our baby girl in late September:

So far, the pregnancy has been as smooth as we could have hoped for (thank goodness!). I think I've transitioned from scared and worried to excited (and worried). The anticipation of my life changing forever is killing me, and I'm "ready" to cross the Rubicon. I'm ready to finally become an adult 😆:

AI did not take my job

Over the past few months, my main freelance client has been slowly reducing all their contractors' dev hours. Surprisingly, this wasn't directly related to AI, but rather to import tariffs and competing products entering their market, which continue to strain their business.

So, for the first time in 8 years, I find myself looking for work as a software developer.

Ideally, I'd maintain my current lifestyle of splitting my time between indie hacking and freelance client work.

However, my daughter arrives in late September, and my last invoice went out in early August 😳.

AI might not have taken my job, but it has definitely fucked the economics of being a software developer. It was really good while it lasted 😭.

AI killed the side-project signal

Pre-AI, I could point to my side-projects and say:

I'm doing this because I love it
Sam Altman being relatable.

Revealing my love for the craft and, by extension, my ability to start, build, and ship software.

Post-AI, side-projects are no longer an indicator of passion, technical ability, or tenacity to follow through on an idea.

So after more than a decade of building side-projects, I now need to prove my chops some other way.

Hand-coding is still necessary

In my previous retro, I proclaimed that I would never hand-code again, and I was wrong. Hand-coding is still necessary to land a job as a software developer.

These days, after a full day of agent-coding on my various indie projects, I tackle 1 or 2 hand-coding challenges on LeetCode, hoping to convince a future employer that I'm a capable software developer. A twisted turn of events.

The code that ships, I don't write. The code I write, never ships.

Indie hacking keeps dying

Unfortunately, indie hacking has suffered (another!!!) fatal blow:

Fireship reports on my dying career.

There are groups on Facebook dedicated to vibe-coding, where Idea Guysâ„¢ shill their "really good business ideas" and insist all they need is focus to "literally make millions":

Vibe-coding Facebook post
The average Facebook post.

Sounds like indie hacking has broken containment and isn't just for the ambitious software developer anymore.

I suspect this influx of opportunists makes indie hacking a less appealing career path.

I feel a growing need to distinguish myself from vibe-coders by mentioning my CS degree or the fact that I've been indie hacking since 2021. Both lame and inconsequential.

The bigger issue is that these vibe-coders might actually stumble upon real, otherwise-available markets and make it harder for the rest of us (i.e., me!) to build a sustainable SaaS business.

Conclusion

Indie hacking might very well be dead, for me specifically 🥲, unless I can replace my anchor client and keep the dream alive (whatever that means now).

Alternatively, it might be time for me to find an ambitious company to join and lock in for a few years. Feel free to reach out if you're hiring.

Either way, my side-projects aren't the proof of competence they used to be, and maybe this very blog is the only credential I have left.

Thanks for reading! If you're interested in what happens next, I'll email it to you next month.