AI Access vs. Expertise
AI has radically reduced the friction of getting answers. But instant access to information is not the same thing as developing judgment, context and expertise.
Earlier in my career as a MySQL DBA, solving a difficult SQL problem could mean searching IRC, Stack Overflow and YouTube, then finding an expert who could help when those sources were not enough.
I even paid an expert mentor by the hour for technical consultation. Some of those purchased hours ultimately expired unused.
The cost of accessing an answer used to include time, search effort, community access and sometimes money. AI has compressed much of that friction.
That shift is remarkable. But it creates a distinction that matters: access to answers is not the same as expertise.
Expertise still requires knowing which questions to ask, recognizing when an answer is incomplete, understanding tradeoffs, validating assumptions and developing the judgment to act responsibly.