There’s a phrase that’s been whirring around in my head for a few weeks now. It came to mind soon after the realisation I wrote about in last week’s post.
To me, this phrase perfectly describes the shift that’s currently taking place in the tech world. The shift that is enabling non-technical people to create software tools and platforms.
So, what is this phrase I have stuck in my head? It’s ‘The Great Uncoding’. (By the way, I know ‘uncoding’ isn’t a word you’ll find in the dictionary; but I hope you’ll indulge me because I really do like it).
A world built on obscure languages
The tech world that we’ve all understood for decades is a world where building software has largely been about knowing certain languages – Python, JavaScript, SQL, Ruby – to name just a few. People who knew those languages where the talented builders. The greater your language skill, the more you were in demand.
Outside that specialised world people knew nothing of those languages. They may have been in awe of the people who could speak them. But for most ordinary folk, lines of code were a weird, alien way of communicating with machines that held zero interest for them.
What The Great Uncoding really means
Which is why The Great Uncoding is such a phenomenal shift. AI is starting to handle what used to require years of specialised training.
- You no longer need to know the syntax for a database schema; you just describe the structure in plain English and the AI generates the JSON.
- You don’t need to write a function to transform incoming data; you describe what you want done and the AI writes the Python.
- You don’t have to remember which library builds a bar chart; you just say, “Create a bar chart showing X and Y” and a whole ecosystem quietly springs to life.
A new skill set emerges
And because you don’t need that high level of technical skill anymore, it’s enabling a new set of skills to develop. For example:
- clearly describing what you want to create
- understanding how the different parts of the whole you are creating will connect together
- recognising how the different parts of the connected whole interact with each other, and
- anticipating the consequences and results of those connections and interactions
Now, not everyone has a natural inclination for these skills and abilities. Some of them will still need to be learnt. But fundamentally, it will be a lot easier for most people to learn this new skill set than learn a programming language.
Why this feels so significant
And as someone who has spent most of his career in L&D, a field that values clarity, structure, and understanding behavioural impact, it really feels like (for the first time ever) that the technical world is moving towards us, rather than the other way around.
In fact, in a strange twist, AI is becoming like a highly performance-focused version of L&D for software creators. Making it possible for someone like me to embark on building a complex, multi-layered software platform that would have been unthinkable even a year ago.
The mixed emotions that come with change
Understandably, many people are fearful of this shift. And if you’ve just spent years of your life learning to code, I can see how you may not be thrilled by these latest developments.
I don’t have a crystal ball. I don’t know how all of this will play out. Inevitably these shifts will be better for some people than for others.
What does seem clear to me, though, is that more people will be able to turn good ideas into reality than has previously been possible. The world of creation will widen. And the next generation of creators won’t need permission from the technical elite to start. They’ll begin where they are, with what they know, and grow from there.
Early days but a clear direction
But it’s still very early days. None of this is anywhere close to reaching its full shape yet. We’re re-building the plane while it’s flying fast through the air.
But the overall direction of travel is clear. The act of software creation is becoming more conversational and more human-centred.
As I look ahead to next year, with PerformaGo prototypes, pilot schemes, and early user journeys starting to take shape, I feel like I’m walking right into the middle of this wider transformation.
The Great Uncoding isn’t a moment. It’s a process. And it’s only just getting started.
With the Christmas and New year holiday period almost upon us, I’m taking a break from the Diary for a couple of weeks and will be back with my next post the week commencing 5th January.
Thanks for following the journey so far. I wish you all very Happy Christmas and a productive and exciting 2026.
