1. Constructing an algorithm yourself from first principles, then implementing it. Let's call this "architect level"

2. Reading someone else's description of an algorithm (from a textbook, a blog post, etc.) and implementing it yourself. "Senior dev level"

3. Starting with an existing implementation, treating certain parts of that implementation as a blackbox, but adapting other parts. (e.g. a StackOverflow solution doesn't have a cache, but you need one for performance and add one yourself) "Junior dev level"

4. Copying/pasting with minimal modification. (e.g. ChatGPT gives you a solution that doesn't have a cache. You reprompt it, asking it to add a caching strategy. Your contribution is correcting some names or parameter order and adding some glue code. The main insight you gain here is how to drive ChatGPT, not how the code itself functions.)

Can today's new devs climb from rung 4 to rung 3? If the answer is yes, then maybe nothing has fundamentally changed. If it's a no, then we may be in for trouble 10 to 15 years down the road.