Anthropic’s top engineer says a new generation of AI agents capable of manipulating computers will reshape nearly all internet-based jobs in America.
And change is coming soon, he said.
Boris Cerny, the creator of Anthropic’s Claude Code, best known for his Claude chatbot, recently appeared on Lenny’s Podcast, hosted by Lenny Rachitsky.
He said AI systems, such as the ones Anthropic sells access to, that can take actions across computer tools in the workplace are advancing rapidly and could soon change the responsibilities of software engineers, product managers, designers and other knowledge workers.
“This will extend to almost any type of work that can be done on a computer,” Charney said. “In the meantime, there will be tremendous disruption. It will be painful for many people.”
Claude Code is an AI coding agent built on Anthropic’s Claude model. The company released its latest update, called Opus 4.6, in early February.
Unlike traditional chatbots that generate text and images, AI agents can use digital tools to execute commands, analyze documents, send messages to colleagues, complete tasks across apps, and even build websites.
Essentially, Claude Code is getting better at using computers like humans, but the company recently said it’s still not at the level of a skilled human.
“This is something that brings agent AI to people who have never really used it before, and I think people are just starting to get a feel for it for the first time,” he said.
Charney says his team is already using AI to speed up their work. Since launching Claude Code, he says productivity per engineer has increased significantly. He believed the model would continue to improve. (Of course, Cherny also has good reason to promote the products it sells to businesses.)
Charney recently said in an interview on Y Combinator’s Lightcone podcast that the software engineer role will start to “disappear” in 2026.
The broader impact remains uncertain, he warned.
“As a society, this is a conversation we have to resolve together,” he told Rachitsky. “Anyone can build software at any time.”
For employees making the shift, his advice is direct. Try out AI tools and learn how they work.
“Don’t be afraid of them,” he said.
