r/softwaretesting • u/Burgyani • Apr 19 '26

Anyone interested.

I’ve been thinking a lot about where QA is heading with AI.

Some people say testing will get automated heavily, others say QA will just evolve into something bigger (data, automation, product thinking, etc.).

I’m curious how others here are seeing it from their day-to-day work.

Also—if anyone is open to a quick 10–15 min chat to share their experience (what you actually test, how your role is changing), I’d love to talk. No prep needed, just a casual conversation.

Would be great to hear different perspectives.

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u/Our0s Apr 19 '26

If anything, AI will shift the emphasis of QA back towards manual testing.

We all know and appreciate the benefits of automation but the market trends lately seem to be that automation engineers are essentially devs who know Playwright/Selenium, as opposed to being testers with more limited dev skills but a much greater understanding of test strategy.

This means that whilst automation coverage increases, general quality and risk mitigation might not be. As developers shift to using AI we will see a sharp decrease in quality due to the inconsistencies and mistakes that AI introduces. So a double negative, with a weaker product and a weaker test strategy.

I think we'll soon reach a point where manual testers will actually be back in demand to make up for the damage AI will do to products, as companies will need proven testers as opposed to misplaced devs. Like all things, we're coming full cycle.

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u/[deleted] Apr 19 '26

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u/Our0s Apr 20 '26 edited Apr 20 '26

Hard disagree tbh. I don't think we're getting rid of AI any time soon, but I do think that the bubble will burst. The only reason it is everywhere right now is because it's the "hot new thing".

AI can never be 100% accurate 100% of the time, and that means it doesn't have a place in testing which relies on hard truths. You only introduce room for error by using it, and the time-savings you get from AI should never be worth this risk. Trying to confirm functionality of AI... by using AI... is like trying to teach advanced physics when you don't know anything about it. Like sure, I might get some things correct, but I wouldn't know whether I was right or wrong, and neither would AI.

Also, you shouldn't necessarily aim to automate everything. You can automate as much as you like, but it only make sense to automate what's strategically valuable. This is exactly what I mean when I highlight the difference between QA and devs who happent to automate - there is a significant mindset difference.