Ask HN: Is anyone else just done with the industry?

General Disillusionment with Tech and “the Industry”

• Many describe the modern tech industry as extractive, cynical, and more about stock price, monopolies, and “milking” users than about helping people.
• There’s frustration with shovelware, hype (especially AI), and “Silicon Valley brainrot” infecting even non-FAANG companies.
• Several long-timers say the cultural veneer of being “progressive” and employee-friendly has vanished, revealing a standard adversarial employer–employee relationship.

Burnout, Mental Health, and Overwork

• Multiple people report cycles of burnout every few years, often leading to impulsive career decisions.
• Stories include 5am–10pm global-team schedules, endless meetings, and being forced to absorb work from departed colleagues without backfill.
• Some advise therapy, sabbaticals, or short breaks; others argue for tougher personal boundaries and treating work as a pure money-for-labor transaction.
• A minority dismiss the complaints as “whiny,” saying software remains one of the best-paid, cushiest careers compared with most work.

Job Market, Hiring, and Ghost Jobs

• Consensus that the current market is the worst in years: extreme selectivity, narrow skill demands, offshoring, and R&D tax changes (Section 174) are mentioned.
• Many complain of fake/“ghost” job postings, performative hiring, and dysfunctional recruiting pipelines.
• Take-home assignments and multi-stage interviews are seen as excessive, disrespectful of candidates’ time, and often poorly correlated with real work.

AI, Automation, and the Future of Work

• Some fear AI will replace most developers or massively expand the pool of “good enough” coders, depressing wages.
• Others argue AI can’t reason about correctness or product fit, so senior engineers and system thinkers will remain essential; AI is framed as a force multiplier, not a replacement.
• Comparisons are made to hardware: automation shifts roles rather than eliminating them.

Alternatives, Exit Paths, and Coping Strategies

• Suggested paths: smaller “boring” companies, industrial/controls work, academia or science-oriented orgs, non-tech corporate roles, trades (plumber/electrician), starting a coop or small dev shop, or buying a small SaaS.
• Several advocate building savings, networking, and skills so you can say “no” to toxic environments.
• Some call for collective responses (unions, cooperatives), arguing tech workers are finally realizing they’re just workers like everyone else.