is programming dead

by ayaan.

recently, according to github observation, the code commits and github actions have been increasing significantly over year and ai code generation tools like github copilot, claude code and open code have been on the rise.

github code commits and ai tools growth trend

reason:ai(artificial intelligence)

ai can write code, and ai can build end-to-end apps in minutes. but ai can’t master programming because there is one thing ai can’t replace: the wrapper of programming.

programming is not just writing code. it is understanding how code takes input and gives output.

every programming language such as c, python, javascript, etc. goes through a compiler or interpreter and then executes binary code that the machine can understand.

this is a basic understanding taught in programming.

but there is one thing most people miss: every compiler or interpreter turns every code into another form before binary code.

that is where the wrapper idea comes in.

c wraps asm

in c programming, when you write code, the compiler first converts it into assembly language, not directly into binary language.

when we run the code, it passes through assembly-level instructions that are later turned into binary at the cpu level. that is not visible to us.

example:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
	printf("hello");
	return 0;
}

this code is not understood directly by the cpu. it is first compiled, then lowered into assembly instructions, and then into machine-level binary.

so, c wraps asm.

python wraps c

python is different because it runs through a special program written in c or c++.

python uses the cpython interpreter that converts code into bytecode. that cpython itself is written in c, and that is one reason python is slower than c.

so python has one more c wrapper inside it.

example:

print("Hello")

this goes through cpython and turns into bytecode. that bytecode can then be executed by the runtime to run the program.

so, python wraps c.

javascript wraps c++

similarly, javascript uses the v8 engine, which is written in c++.

example:

console.log("Hello");

this code is processed by v8 and converted into bytecode or optimized machine code internally.

so, javascript wraps c++.

so, code in every programming language goes through another layer before reaching the binary that the machine executes, even if ai writes the code.

ai can write code too, but it cannot replace the understanding level of programming.

that is where programming is alive.

if you are a programmer and you like how ai writes code, ai wrappers work, and ai tools help us, then you must learn the wrappers of programming languages too.

c wraps asm
python wraps c
javascript wraps c++
and more

that is the wrapper of programming.