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Tue, April 21DeepTech TechLead
The job market for computer science graduates is shifting rapidly, revealing a growing gap between academic training and industry expectations. Traditional programming education—focused on syntax and theory before practical application—no longer meets the needs of employers or students. In this keynote, the case is made that programming as we once knew it is effectively over. The future lies in AI-First programming, a new learning model built on a continuous cycle of trying, learning, and growing. Learners begin by building code with AI assistance, deepen understanding by asking AI to explain and refine that code, and expand their skills by testing and extending real-world applications. This approach accelerates confidence, builds practical capability, and develops the kind of AI engineers that modern organizations urgently need.
What You Will Learn
Why traditional programming education is failing to prepare graduates for modern software development
How AI-First programming creates a faster, more applied path to mastery
A structured loop of try, learn, and grow that builds confidence and real-world capability
Who Should Attend
Educators, software developers, engineering leaders, and students interested in the evolution of programming education and the rise of AI-assisted development.
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Stephen Chin is VP of Developer Relations at Neo4j and author of The Definitive Guide to Modern Client Development, Raspberry Pi with Java, Pro JavaFX Platform, and the DevOps Tools for Java Developers title from O'Reilly. He has keynoted numerous conferences around the world, including Devoxx, DevNexus, JNation, JavaOne, Joker, swampUP, and Open Source India. Stephen is an avid motorcyclist who has done evangelism tours in Europe, Japan, and Brazil, interviewing hackers in their natural habitat. When he is not traveling, he enjoys teaching kids how to do AI, embedded, and robot programming together with his daughters.
Cassandra has given keynotes at Devnexus, Devoxx Belgium, and Devoxx Morocco. Her latest book, Raising Young Coders, is published by Apress and helps parents to inspire their kids to love technology. She has been teaching technology kids workshops at international conferences since she was 13 years old and is passionate about helping allow women, minorities, and underprivileged students to learn about technology. Her books have been featured at international events like Kubecon + CloudNativeCon and in popular technology shows like theCUBE and Techstrong TV.
