Why This Socialist Software Engineer Opposes AI Under Capitalism

Summary

In this opinion essay, a software engineer describes how the COVID-19 pandemic changed his view of capitalism and led him to identify as a socialist. He defines socialism as organizing society around human needs and argues that capitalism treats human life as subordinate to profit. The author says AI intensifies this problem through hyperscale data centers, which he characterizes as environmentally damaging and disruptive to local communities. He also argues that companies have an economic incentive to replace workers with agents because software systems do not require wages, leave, or other labor protections. At the same time, he uses agentic coding models at work and says LLMs can be useful and improve people’s lives in some circumstances. His objection is therefore directed at AI’s use within the current economic system rather than at every possible application of the technology. He argues that responsible AI use is not possible under capitalism because deployment remains tied to profit, labor substitution, and the accumulation of wealth. The essay concludes by calling for policies that limit AI use in the short term and for a longer-term society organized around the needs of all people. The piece is an explicitly political argument, not an empirical study, and it provides no quantitative evidence for its claims.