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Music was never an issue of skill. You might have needed skill in order to get to the point where you could use your judgement, but skill was never the deciding factor. So, I don't agree with Brian Eno's point that there has been some kind of seismic shift when it comes to this. Rather, it's just a matter of a shift in the type of skill that you need to have. The same is probably true when it comes to AI tools within the field of programming.


Getting a seat in a symphony involves skill. Brian Eno didn't just do rock.


Ever seen a photoshop expert at work? Every human endeavor has a skill distribution. Hammering in a nail takes skill.


I'm just arguing that there has been no qualitative shift. The skills you need to produce pop music today are different than the skills that you needed before. Now you need to be able to operate a MIDI sequencer or a program like Ableton, which is not necessarily easier in and off itself, than for instance learning how to play a guitar. I think it's the same with AI tools and programming. We're just talking about a different set of skills that you need in order to be competitive. I don't think there has been any real shift from "skill needed" to "judgement needed". I think this relationship remains the same, both for pop music and programming, but also for the example of playing an instrument in a symphony orchestra.




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