Also a firmware engineer. I see 4 career paths under the advent of AI:
1. If you can't beat em, join em - get a masters in ML or something and work at a higher level of the stack. I know several folks who have pivoted this way and are happy.
2. Double down - there will always be layers below the AI (drivers, silicon, etc). Sure, ChatGPT will continue chipping away at how much coding we do day to day, but at the end of the day, good luck to an AI trying to debug I2C bus clock stretching issues IRL. And you can bet that these robotic actuators have plenty of hardware issues to debug.
3. Pick an area of tech which is relatively immune (medical/automotive/aerospace) due to regulatory and other barriers to AI entry. You don't necessarily need robotics/CV experience to do this.
4. GTFO (I say this with no judgment) - and work in a different industry which is less likely to be automated. It would not be the most lucrative option but is certainly an option.
1. If you can't beat em, join em - get a masters in ML or something and work at a higher level of the stack. I know several folks who have pivoted this way and are happy.
2. Double down - there will always be layers below the AI (drivers, silicon, etc). Sure, ChatGPT will continue chipping away at how much coding we do day to day, but at the end of the day, good luck to an AI trying to debug I2C bus clock stretching issues IRL. And you can bet that these robotic actuators have plenty of hardware issues to debug.
3. Pick an area of tech which is relatively immune (medical/automotive/aerospace) due to regulatory and other barriers to AI entry. You don't necessarily need robotics/CV experience to do this.
4. GTFO (I say this with no judgment) - and work in a different industry which is less likely to be automated. It would not be the most lucrative option but is certainly an option.