Matt Garman, CEO of Amazon Cloud Computing Services (AWS), recently stated that software engineers are still crucial to Amazon, and the company’s demand for software development talents has not only not declined, but is accelerating. He revealed that Amazon plans to recruit about 11,000 software development engineer (SDE) interns in 2026. An Amazon spokesperson said that this scale is roughly similar to the level in recent years.
Garman made the remarks at the “What’s Next with AWS” event held on Tuesday. He said that even as artificial intelligence tools continue to change the way software is developed, Amazon is still hiring developers in large numbers. "I can tell you that we're not hiring any less software developers within Amazon than we have been in the past," he said. "In fact, I think the demand is really accelerating."
As the debate heats up about whether AI will impact or even replace programmers, Garman has reservations. He disagrees that AI will decimate software engineering jobs on a large scale, but acknowledges that the role of engineers is changing as new tools automate parts of the job. He said that the ability to "be able to write a piece of Java code proficiently by hand" will be less valuable in the future than it was a few years ago.
In his view, what is more important is broader capabilities, such as building complete applications, understanding and solving customer problems, etc. At the same time, he emphasized that knowledge of the underlying technology remains critical, especially when working with customers using cloud services. This technical understanding is indispensable.
In contrast to Garman’s relatively optimistic stance, some technology leaders have recently issued stronger warnings about the impact of AI coding tools. Since late 2025, companies including Anthropic have been rolling out tools that can generate code in minutes. In February, Claude Code creator Boris Cherny said the job title “software engineer” might eventually “disappear.” Martin Casado, a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, also said that this field is being disrupted by AI as a "discipline."
Garman has previously pushed back against more radical views. Last August, he called the idea of replacing junior employees with AI "one of the stupidest things I've ever heard." Amazon’s announcement of a large-scale hiring of software development interns coincides with layoffs across multiple enterprise business units, including about 16,000 employees earlier this year. The company emphasized that this round of layoffs was not primarily driven by AI.
An Amazon spokesperson told Business Insider: "Amazon has always viewed the internship program as an important way to discover the next generation of leaders and builders." He added that according to the plan, the company will welcome more than 11,000 software development interns and early-career full-time software development engineers worldwide in 2026.