Staying Human in the Age of AI: What Tech Leaders Need to Preserve

The first AI-related episode of the Compressed FM podcast was episode 130, titled 'Chat GPT and AI, initial reactions,' which aired on April 12th, 2023.

AI has commoditized developers and democratized the process of building web applications, making coding more accessible to a broader population and allowing more people to code than ever before.

The paradox is that while AI makes coding tasks more straightforward and commoditized, the complexity of technical decisions has increased because AI enables teams to adopt almost any technology.

Human values are crucial because they guide decision-making beyond technical solutions, addressing the human complexities and dynamics that AI cannot navigate, such as team dynamics, values alignment, and cultural decision-making.

The author resolved value conflicts by discussing individual and team values openly, understanding different perspectives, and aligning decisions with these values during team retrospectives and decision-making processes.

The author found 'Engineering Leadership for the Rest of Us' by Sarah Drossner influential, particularly its insights on understanding and working with team values.

The Redwood JS core team addressed GDPR compliance concerns by shifting from GraphQL to SQLite databases running in durable objects to ensure data processing within specific geographical regions, aligning with their values of inclusivity and global accessibility.

Understanding team values leads to faster decision-making, reduced friction in implementation, better adaptation to changes, and improved teamwork by aligning technical decisions with the team's shared values.