Roadmap to Software Engineering 2.0

Five years ago, we asked how software developers should be educated and how that shapes team composition. GenAI has changed the answer, so we're revisiting the question from a new angle: what do software engineering education and team composition look like in 2026?
This evening combines a provocative talk with an expert panel.

Talk: "Abstractions Won't Save You" by Gabriel Pickl
Abstractions are powerful. They let us capture domain knowledge in code and APIs, which frees up mental space for more complex systems. But they become a problem when they replace understanding, and when they are shaped by marketing and profit incentives. Over the past two decades, we have grown increasingly dependent on abstractions we neither own nor understand. We have started teaching junior developers through abstractions we don't control, instead of teaching fundamental skills.
How does this affect our ability to build stable systems and to innovate? Is this approach still defensible when our most basic tools are becoming less trustworthy? Gabriel argues that we should import fewer abstractions, take ownership of our systems, and teach the next generation the fundamentals needed to fix the machines behind the machines when they break.

Panel: The Roadmap for Software Engineers in 2026
Our panelists will discuss how AI is changing the skills engineers need, how learning paths should adapt, and how teams should be composed.
Agenda

• 18:00: Doors open
• 18:15–18:20: Welcome drinks
• 18:20–18:30: Host introduction
• 18:30–19:15: Talk "Abstractions Won't Save You" by Gabriel (30 min talk + 15 min Q&A)
• 19:15–19:25: Bio break
• 19:25–20:10: Panel discussion (45 min)
• After 20:10: Open-end networking

Please bring your questions, your opinions, and your curiosity about where software engineering is heading.