Re-Skilling rather than De-Skilling

Every wave of automation triggers the same fear: that the tools we build to assist us will, in time, make us less capable. AI-assisted development has brought this worry to the forefront. Are we outsourcing the thinking and neglecting the learning? Are we creating systems we can't understand or couldn’t have developed ourselves?

De-skilling, however, is not a law of nature. It is a consequence of how we choose to work. There are capabilities that become more valuable when generation is cheap — and there are habits of mind we must deliberately protect.

In this keynote, Michael Feathers will talk about what atrophies when we are not paying attention, what genuinely strengthens, and where the real leverage now lies. Expect concrete practices you can take back to your team — ways to structure AI interactions and day-to-day work so that we grow sharper alongside our tools rather than duller behind them.