Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has said that the world’s top programmers no longer write code themselves. Instead, they write specifications, set evaluation criteria, and let artificial intelligence handle the heavy lifting overnight, completing work that would previously have taken months and large teams of engineers.

Speaking about a programmer at one of his startups, Schmidt described how the individual sets up what the AI is expected to build each evening, writes a test function to judge the output, and allows the system to work through the night, finishing by around 4am. “This stuff would have taken me six months and 10 programmers at Google,” he said.

Contrary to fears that AI could make programmers obsolete, Schmidt argued that elite engineers will become even more valuable. The ability to orchestrate AI systems, define the right constraints, and judge output quality is becoming the central skill, he said. “If you can define the evaluation function and you can let it run, and if you have enough hardware, you’re inventing worlds,” he added.

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Schmidt suggested that AI’s most significant impact will not be on programming alone, but on automating the “boring” and costly operational functions of business, such as billing, accounting, inventory management, and logistics. These processes, he argued, drain billions from company budgets each year and could be radically streamlined by AI.

Looking further ahead, Schmidt predicted that artificial general intelligence could emerge as early as 2029, driven by recursive self-improvement—AI systems that learn and plan independently, without human instruction. He also highlighted potential breakthroughs in fields including medicine, climate solutions, and engineering, where AI-driven automation could unlock innovations that remain largely untapped.