Is Web Development Dying? Inside information

Spoiler alert. Only if your entire personality is a Wix template.

Right. Designers. Let’s have a little group huddle.

Apparently, we’re done for. Finished. Shove your wireframes in the bin and kiss goodbye to client briefs because AI’s coming for our jobs and it’s bringing “Webflow integrations” and questionable colour palettes with it.

Except it’s not. So you can stop panic-Googling “careers for burnt-out creatives who hate maths”.

We've Heard This Before

Remember when Canva dropped and the internet lost its mind? “Graphic design is dead” they said. Meanwhile, we were still cropping out dodgy backgrounds, still battling with brands that think hot pink and lime green are a vibe, and still explaining why a logo can’t just be “bigger”.

This is the same thing. AI’s just the new kid in town. It’s shiny. It’s fast. It’ll write your content, design your site and probably offer you life coaching on the side. But does it actually connect with people? Not a chance.

AI Can Build Websites. So Can That One Client’s Nephew.

Yes. AI can knock out a website in about 14 seconds. Big whoop. So can Dave from HR with a Wix login and a Red Bull addiction.

The real question is whether it understands your client. Their brand. Their weird niche. The audience they’re desperately trying to reach while shouting into the void of Instagram reels and SEO trends they definitely don’t understand.

AI can guess. We know. We chat to clients. We decode vague voice notes that say “I want it to feel kind of like... optimistic but not cheesy?” and turn them into functioning sites that feel like someone cared!

There’s Clients. And Then There’s Clients.

Let’s be honest. Some clients will run full speed into AI’s arms. These are the same people who’d have picked a free template and called it “on brand” because it had a picture of a laptop and vaguely calming blue tones.

But the good ones? The ones who care about their business and actually want to resonate with people? They’re not outsourcing their brand story to a robot. Because they know that connection takes more than code and colour schemes.

It takes listening. It takes human instinct. It takes experience. It takes hearts to connect with hearts.

It takes hearts to connect with hearts.

Real People. Real Problems. Not Just Prompts.

Let’s take a real example. Coaching Focus Group is one of those clients who actually care about what their website says and does. I don’t just slap on a logo and hit publish. I manage their brand, their site and a whole load of the messy in-between. Yes, we use AI sometimes...for things like rough copy drafts or sparking ideas but it’s just a tool in the kit. Not the whole toolbox.

Their world is niche. Their message is nuanced. They work in leadership and employee engagement, which isn’t exactly the kind of thing you can brief in with “Make it inspiring but not cheesy” and let a bot run wild.

It takes conversation. Simplifying. Strategy. Sessions fuelled by actual human back-and-forth where ideas evolve from vague concepts into something real and resonant. AI can help shape it, sure. But it can’t understand it. And it definitely can’t lead it.

Just take a look at their employee engagement article. That didn’t come out of a box. That took time, collaboration, and design that actually reflected their voice. Not a generic template pretending to care.

Web Dev Isn’t Dying. It’s Just Shedding Its Skin (Again)

We’re not here pretending nothing’s changing. AI’s going to speed up a lot of stuff. And honestly, if it means fewer late nights writing HTML for buttons nobody clicks, I’m in.

But the core of this job? That weird mix of psychology, problem solving and pulling ideas out of chaos? That’s still alive. Very much so. And still needs people who get it. Not just people who prompt it.

So no. Web development isn’t dying. It’s just evolving a bit. Shedding the clunky bits. Keeping the soul.