‘The challenge now is making sure the next generation develops those same foundations before relying too heavily on AI’: Devs are swerving fundamental skills like Git and Agile because of AI – but there’s a good reason

Software developers aren't losing skills because of AI, but using time saved to skill up, according to research from O’Reilly.

Analysis from the learning platform found that rather than the boom in AI coding tools having a negative effect on developer capabilities, many view the technology as a way to streamline everyday tasks to help them focus on learning.

O'Reilly said that use of generative AI content on its own learning platform was up 89% in the UK over the last year, while machine learning grew by 51% and natural language processing was up 117%.

At the same time, O'Reilly noted that more traditional programming topics saw decline over the last year, with "programming fundamentals" down 74%, Agile falling 31%, and Git down 20%.

Latest Videos From

Watch full video here:

While that could be seen as software engineers handing off such work to AI and not bothering to study key subjects, the study noted this suggests many are learning such skills on the job and using AI to support learning.

Formal training time, meanwhile, is spent learning about more advanced AI-related topics.

Alexia Pedersen, SVP International at O’Reilly, said the study shows developers are now making AI a “core part of their learning priorities”.

"The UK tech workforce isn’t turning its back on programming," Pedersen said. "It’s building on years of engineering expertise to take advantage of the opportunities AI creates. That’s exactly what we’d expect from experienced developers."

"Many already have years of programming experience, which puts them in a strong position to adopt AI tools confidently and apply them in meaningful ways," she added.

AI isn’t a replacement for core skills

That said, O'Reilly warned that AI should complement, not replace, foundational programming knowledge – especially for newer developers.

As ITPro reported last year, concerns are rising that those entering the workforce are becoming too reliant on the technology. The result is that many could miss out on valuable learning curves in the early stages of their careers.

"The challenge now is making sure the next generation develops those same foundations before relying too heavily on AI," Pedersen commented. "AI will make great developers even better, but it can’t replace the technical judgement that comes from understanding how software really works."

The company suggested that while developers are choosing to learn in different ways, it's worth noting that employers still require specific programming skills.

React, Node.js and Java skills are still highly sought after while cloud-related knowledge is prevalent in many UK job ads.

Indeed, demand for the Clean Code courses grew 19% over the last year, O'Reilly said, with C# up 17% – showing practical coding capabilities remains important.

"What this data captures is a workforce making active choices about where their time goes," Pedersen said.

"UK tech professionals aren't casually browsing AI content – they're incorporating technical learning into new ways of working, building AI agents, testing different approaches, and exploring how these tools can improve productivity and outcomes.

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Follow ITPro on Google News and add us as a preferred source to keep tabs on all our latest news, analysis, views, and reviews.

You can also follow ITPro on LinkedIn, X, Facebook, and BlueSky.