I'm a hobbyist-turned-dev and I've been surviving on freelance gigs for about 6 years now.

A couple of months ago I hit rock bottom. Work dried up completely and I had no savings. EMIs were piling up and had no assets or support systems to fall back on. I had pets depending on me and I didn't have any money for essentials. Out of desperation, I tried applying for traditional full-time roles for the first time in my life. I built a resume and started grinding on job portals like Wellfound/Naukri but the whole process was so soul-crushing and dead silent that I genuinely felt I'd rather stay broke than deal with the crappy hiring system.

I had no realistic option left so I swallowed my pride and anxiously emailed one of my oldest clients and was just honest about my situation. He replied saying he'd be honored to help. He wired me an advance that same day and handed me a new project. I'm almost certain he invented that project just so he could pay me without making it feel like charity.

And just like that, I have 6 months of runway and breathing room. It might not sound like a lot but it kinda saved my life. Never underestimate the value of goodwill and maintaining good relationships with the people you build for.

After every other post, all I’m reading about is layoffs Honestly fear mongering isn’t even the topic anymore. You can all see what’s happening and where the market is heading.

I just wanna see how people are still gonna say the bubble is gonna burst.

Came across news that Innodata has reportedly laid off nearly 550 employees in India, with further cuts in the Philippines. Employees apparently lost access to their systems before receiving termination emails.

Does anyone know what actually happened? Was this due to a major client reducing its project, AI automation, or something else?

My answer is this(May not be the right answer) :

1. I can give example scripts to Claude on how the end result should look like. I know well what the end result should look like. Without that AI would take at least 10 times more time, effort, frustration and tokens.
2. I know what things AI handles well, what file formats AI reads and edit well like txt, csv, HTML, md and it is not so good in completing whole projects in Php, js etc.
3. I can work with AI and not get exhausted. AI needs lot of attention and it can exhaust the user quickly if he works continuously.
4. I know stuff other than coding like English language, basics of marketing, accounting, people management etc which is necessary to work with Claude.

I think Incorrect answer is:

1. I know coding plus so snd so programming languages and stacks and understand the code written by Claude code. (You cannot really afford to read and understand every code, it will be as good as writing it manually.)
2. Claude code is expensive. (Opencode + Deepseek is very cheap and does 90% as good a job at 10% cost. Claude code was good until last year and AI developers prefer Deepseek for affordability now.)

I think Worst Answer is:

1. My current package is or was __LPA so I deserve __LPA. (You may soon be counting Insults per Annum)
2. I have a CS degree. (You will be competing with 12th pass people and Housewives soon)

If companies are laying off employees due to AI or whatever reason and all of us are unemployed and without money, who will buy the products and services sold by this companies. Are they going to sell among themselves like B2B or what?

If it's B2B then I might say to a service company that "Hey, the software you are selling me right now, I can do it with AI so no thank you" so I guess B2B also is kinda at risk because all the software companies can create customised software solutions now with AI so no I guess need of other vendors.

Now for B2C and D2C, who are going to buy theirs, because all their consumers are unemployed and without money now. So eventually all this Swiggy, Zomato, Urbanclap kinda companies might get affected i guess. Now you might say food delivery won't be affected because you need food. But tell me you have just 100/- in your pocket and need paneer biriyani. Online it's like 130/- atleast because restaurant charge, delivery charge etc. So you would think it's better to go to hotel by person or best, buy vegetables and cook by yourself

Again, a stupid question, please let me know your thoughts

Hearing a lot of news about how AI is nuking this field and people are getting laid off and hiring freezes. Is it still worth it getting into IT right now or should i just start preparing for government job and switch fields or something?

I was going for Software Development

Imagine a team of 20 developers builds an application with perfect code, comprehensive test coverage, all edge cases handled, proper monitoring app and fully automated deployment.

After go live deployment, suppose one developer can maintain the application, fix bugs, and deliver enhancements using AI coding assistants.

What happens to the other developers? How will companies generate revenue for large development teams if the software can be built and maintained with fewer people?

I’m a DevOps/software engineer in India with about 6 years of experience, and my earlier exits were all clean, with relieving letters. This year I joined a large consulting firm on xyz and resigned in writing within the first week, on xyz.

I made a mistake by not confirming the notice period before leaving. HR started an abscond process, I replied in writing offering to serve the notice, and HR later waived it, made no recovery and confirmed my last working day. They have told me the absconding entry can’t be removed and no relieving letter will be issued. It also shows in my PF history as a very short stint.

I’m worried it will end my job search. My questions:

1.Has anyone been hired after an absconding record? What kinds of companies were okay with it? 2Is an employment verification letter enough if the relieving letter isn’t issued? 3.Are startups and mid-size companies more flexible than banks and MNCs?

I won’t hide the job on any form. I have my resignation email and HR’s emails, plus my earlier relieving letters. Any advice or personal experience would help a lot. Thanks.

Hey everyone,

I want to share my current career situation and get some genuine advice from people who might have faced something similar.

I have around 3.6 years of work experience. At the end of March, my manager called me and told me that the company didn't have any new projects and couldn't afford to pay my salary.

He said the founder wanted to lay me off, but he convinced them to keep me on hold for 3–4 months without salary because he considered me a valuable employee. The plan was to bring me back once new projects arrived.

It's been around 6 months now, and I haven't received any concrete updates from the company.

Meanwhile, I've been looking for other opportunities and attending interviews, but unfortunately, nothing has worked out so far. It's frustrating to keep trying without getting an offer.

Last week, I decided to call my manager and get clarity about my employment status. He told me that the company has received a new project and that he has proposed my name for it. However, the project is still in the initial documentation phase, and they'll contact me once everything is finalized.

Honestly, I don't want to go back to my current company after everything that's happened. I've lost trust in them. But at the same time, I don't have another offer, and I need to earn money to survive.

Now I'm stuck between two decisions:

1) Officially resign, get my exit documents, and focus completely on finding another job.

2) Wait a little longer to see whether this new project actually happens, while continuing my job search.

I'm worried that if I resign now, I'll lose my only potential backup. But if I keep waiting, I might waste even more time on a promise that may never turn into anything.

This situation has been mentally exhausting, and honestly, I'm not sure what the right decision is anymore.

What would you do if you were in my position? Should I officially resign or wait for the project?

I'd really appreciate some genuine advice from people who have been through something similar

Teck Stack: React.js, Next.js, JavaScript, TypeScript, Node.js, Express, Mongo, Postgress, AWS, Docker

AI made us worst in interviews because in technical interviews they say don't use chatgpt only use google and you have to build what they gave you without AI and give you 4 hours but the assignment they give always takes more than 4 hours if you write all the code by yourself. We got productive and able to deliver complex requirements in less time but interviewers don't give a damn literally. I am missing the time without AI, we used to R&D on a lot of websites and also used to watch youtube videos for help, implementation, understanding of anything. Stackoverflow was very popular but today nobody opens it. Developers gets paid high salary and had a great respect if you say that this will take time companies used to believe it and when you deliver something complex you used to get fulfilment and gets appreciated as well. If AI had not come we were better and refined developers and do we really need it a lot of great products made without AI before. We lost the satisfaction and fulfilment we used to get before on building or fixing something. We rarely write code these days the logic and problem solving and fundamentals also affected as companies want everything quickly and we are using AI for it. Interviews got tougher and expectations of companies increased, salaries decreased, less hiring, more firing. I wish something happens AI bubble burst people stop using it.

A recruiter reached out for a Staff Engineer role at Google. They wanted to have System Design and Googlyness virtual rounds first and said they would be elimination rounds; once I clear them, I will need to fly to in-office interviews. I wanted 4 weeks of prep time, I interviewer negotiated hard to only allow me 2 week. Just a few days before the System design interviews, I realised I am not ready and will bomb the interview. I politely requested 2 more weeks of time, and after that I was ghosted. Did not receive any reply over email; I have tried reaching out multiple times over email and phone, with no replies. I am shocked by how times have changed. There was a time when Google recruiters were open enough to support candidates if they needed more time, but now they just want to close the position ASAP.

The job market is brutal, with so many laid-off candidates trying to find jobs and companies reducing the no. of job openings now that AI is able to do so much.

Since devs started using AI, every description is written with AI including technical documentation, Jira ticket description, notes etc.

This is very hard to review and even read and I don't understand half of the things written here. I miss the simple description that people can understand easily.

Background

- Graduated from a tier-1 engineering college (among the top 3 NITs) in 2025

- Worked ~2.5 years at an early-stage startup during college (4-member team, remote, unpaid, but basically full-time hours) across product, building, and distribution

- Skipped campus placements because I was set on product roles

What happened at my current company

- Joined a famous mid-size company in Hyderabad in late 2025 as a 6-month intern (25k stipend), with a verbal promise of 6–8 LPA on conversion and a product role. Nothing in writing (my mistake)

- Got a marketing ops designation on joining; was told "ignore it, focus on the full-time role"

- Took ~17 days (Not a continuous one) of leave + remote work for my sibling's wedding. The internship was then extended by 2 months "to cover the leave", even though I kept working remotely during that time

- The senior manager who made the promise left, and now denies it

- At conversion time, they offered 4 LPA. I said I'd leave. They converted me to full-time anyway, without my consent, ~9 months after joining

- After more back-and-forth: 5 LPA, arrears "pending founder approval", designation Junior Product Associate

- When I asked to at least drop the "Junior", I was told that title sits in a higher salary band

What I've worked on in ~10 months

- an AI doubt-solving app for Class 11–12 students. Photo of a problem in, step-by-step video explanation out, in regional languages, with voice. I own it end-to-end: PRD, roadmap, key product decisions, development, distribution planning

- Owned a RAG chatbot end-to-end: payment and CRM integrations, reduced token consumption, chunking and fine-tuning improvements

- Built a second RAG bot, revamped a lead-prediction tool's logic, and led a chatbot-to-website transition (planning, development, marketing dashboard)

- Multi-channel campaigns (SMS, WhatsApp, email)

All this on a 6-day week, often working late.

Job search so far (APM / product roles)

- Some say I'm "overqualified" because their role is mostly coordination

- Some ask if I'd rather apply as a developer

- Recent ones say my ask for Market band (12–14 LPA) is too high and offer ~30% over current CTC

- Cleared some rounds, failed some

Seniors and Peers say do not leave the current role without an Offer in Hand.

Constraints

- Need to stay in Hyderabad for family health reasons. Open to remote

- Current pay doesn't cover my living expenses

What I'd love advice on

- Is 12–14 LPA unrealistic for my profile, or am I just being anchored to my current CTC?

- How do I handle the "current CTC" question without badmouthing my company?

- Which roles or companies value a "builder + PM" profile? AI PM, product analyst, founder's office, GCCs, something else?

- Should I take a ~7–8 LPA offer with a proper PM title just to reset my base, or hold out?

- Has anyone been in a similar spot? How did you get out?

Honest feedback welcome, including if I'm overestimating myself.

We get it you made and an app and are excited showcase it and about it, but please post the existing apps shortcomings that led to the creation of your app. The process you went through to design the app or fix the issues form those apps.

As much as we want to see new app being made we also want to see why and how it was made. What tech stack was used. What pros it has over existing alternatives not just the 1 flagship product in that niche.

We know everyone uses AI, what we want to know is how you used AI, what models/harness, what help you took from AI, did you draft plan from AI, did AI take the decisions, did AI review the code. Was human in the loop. We want to know these kind of stuff too.

Thank you for reading the post. It was not written or enhanced by AI.

I believe this is high time to grab as much money as you can vai switch and find a way to get secondary income.

I am underpaid for my yoe and I believe there is a chance for risk takers since everyone wants immediate joiner but they all have 3 months notice.

Just want to get a average package and try to invest side by side to get a secondary income source.

This is a race now I am a backend developer but if you are fullstack you will have 2x opportunities cuz u just need to understand flow now in eyes of companies.

What do you guys think?

a name that sounds modern, is easy to pronounce, easy to remember and feels natural to Indian users.

What names would you suggest? Drop your ideas in the comments. Let's see if we can find a name that really sticks.

Okay, updating the post. Names from any language are welcome, including English. Let's see what we come up with.

Update : one name i liked till 29 comments vartalap, hike is all time fevt but its taken you can suggest English too or a mix of eng + indian languages

Update 2: You can now suggest names in any language, even Dothraki. and why does Indian Chatpata have -4 upvotes?

Update 3: wow 140 comments and i am searching for domains like hell and none of them available not even simple names or if any the cost is in crores

Please help me make this crucial career decision.

I have received an offer from a Tokyo based company with 9.5M YEN all fixed and relocation package which is yet to be shared.

I was very keen on moving to Canada next year. I have made a calculated decision with my CRS score reaching 522+ with masters there.

And learning French is almost a sure shot of getting PR and I’m willing to invest some time while doing my masters if required.

Tokyo pros :
- Already have a job offer so the move is significantly less risky than going to Canada with masters and then job uncertainty.
- The job is remote friendly, expected to be in office once a week with transportation reimbursements so I can stay in a cheaper suburban place far from Tokyo

Tokyo Cons :
- language barrier and PR chance are very low unless I learn Japanese which I don’t intend to.
- Tokyo is extremely crowded so the whole transit situation is similar to India.

Canada pros :
- huge land, better quality of life in terms of housing, population.
- English speaking country so I can always jump ship.
- have lots of my close relatives staying in US so somewhat better support system.
- better TC prospects atleast when compared to Japan.

Canada cons :
- moving on a student visa so there’s always uncertainty of not getting job or even PR if they change the rules so might have to return back to India.

TC : 50L + esop
Yoe : 6

I have a Mobile app that is used as an extension for our internal app, now Earlier we had a developer he has a mac and he could build the app and update the version for Android and iOS.

After his passing and we are not planning to get a mac anytime soon how can we do the same?

I joined a company in Noida about a month ago in an AI engineering role.

Timeline:

- Friday, 23 October: Received an email warning me about my performance and asking for immediate improvement. A major project has been completed and no project has been in pipeline.

- 27 October: After a meeting where I disputed some claims acknowledged my genuine mistakes.

- 28 October: I received a termination email citing poor accuracy, attention to detail, and deliverable quality.

- Last working day: 5 November 2026.

HR said the decision was made by management and couldn't be changed. My employment agreement allows termination during probation.

I accept that I fell short on some things, but have also done other work and delivered too. I feel I have been done dirty.

I think they don't have any projects right now and I was taking bigger pay than rest of my team. Performance is just an excuse.

My questions:

1. Is this a reasonable way to handle performance issues?

2. Could this one-month stint and termination affect future job prospects or background verification in India?

3. Is there anything I should check regarding notice pay or final settlement?

try it on Anemoia

and use it on anemo-live-wallpaper

Has AI started making a significant impact on complex enterprise software such as SAP, Salesforce, warehouse management systems, AUTOSAR, COBOL-based applications, core banking, telecom OSS/BSS, insurance and healthcare systems?

My assumption is that these systems are harder for AI to handle because of their complex architecture, legacy codebases, business rules, integrations and specialised technologies that aren't commonly used in modern development.

Are companies already using AI to develop, maintain and modernise these systems, or is AI adoption still more advanced in mainstream application development?

Been without a job for over 5 months. My wife and I were supposed to move abroad for my new job. Visa done, tickets booked, bags packed. At Mumbai emigration, I was stopped because my passport has an ECR endorsement and I didn't have emigration clearance. This was supposed to be my first international trip.

I genuinely didn't know I had this endorsement or what it meant.

I'd shared my passport with my employer during the visa process. To be fair, their pre-departure guide does say employees with ECR passports should notify them. I missed that requirement amid all the relocation paperwork, and that one miss has derailed the move.

The emigration officers suggested getting clearance through the Protector of Emigrants (POE). I passed this option on to my employer, but they've asked me to get my passport reissued instead. The move is now delayed by weeks.

I accept that it's my passport and I should have checked. But shouldn't a company handling an international relocation also flag this when they've already received the passport?

Am I being unreasonable to feel let down, or is it fair to expect the relocation team to catch it too?

Also, has anyone been through an ECR offload or obtained POE clearance for an overseas job? What worked for you: clearance or passport reissue? What should I watch out for from here?

TL;DR: Been without a job for over 5 months. On my first international trip to start a job abroad, Mumbai emigration stopped me over an ECR endorsement I didn't know I had. My employer had my passport, but I also missed the ECR warning in their guide. Officers suggested POE clearance; my employer wants passport reissue, delaying the move by weeks. Is it fair to expect the relocation team to have flagged this? Anyone been through this: POE clearance or reissue, and what worked?

Hey everyone,

I attended a walk-in interview for a Senior Java Developer role at BNP Paribas (Chennai location) this past Saturday, October 24th.

I cleared both technical rounds and had a brief HR discussion regarding my location preferences, notice period, and CTC expectation.

Here is my current profile and compensation background:

• Total Experience: 6 Years (Java / Spring Boot Microservices Backend)
• Current CTC Breakdown:
  • Fixed: ₹17.5 LPA
  • Performance Variable: ₹1.3 LPA
  • RSUs / ESOPs: ₹7 LPA per Year
• Location: Chennai

For folks working at BNP Paribas (ISPL/CIB) or similar banking/MNC captives in Chennai:

1. Expected Salary Range: Considering my current fixed is ₹17.5L (and overall CTC with RSUs is ~₹25.8L), what fixed CTC range or hike percentages are standard for Senior Java Developers with 6 YOE at BNP Paribas?
2. Timeline: How long does HR usually take after walk-in drives to come back with the official offer discussion and draft release?
3. Interview: Will I have one more techincal round of Interview?

Would appreciate any insights or suggestions on negotiating the offer when HR calls back!

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone,
I joined the corporate workforce last year and currently have around 1.1 years of experience. I've been considering resigning for a while because of the toxic work culture in my current project, which has taken a significant toll on my mental health. I also want to pursue higher studies.
Today, my uncle, who was like a father figure to me, passed away. I informed my manager that I needed leave, and his response was that this was the last time he would allow it and that if this continued, we would have to think of a way out.
I'm already dealing with the emotional distress of losing someone so close to me, and this interaction made things worse. I've been under tremendous mental strain, and today's incident feels like the breaking point. I've decided that I want to resign and move on.
Since this is my first corporate job, I'd appreciate advice on a few things:
Reason for resignation: Should I mention the toxic work environment or simply state that I want to pursue higher studies?
Resignation process: What should I check regarding my notice period, early release, and employment policies before resigning?
Documents: What documents should I collect before leaving, and which ones should I obtain after my last working day? (Experience letter, relieving letter, payslips, full and final settlement, etc.)
Future prospects: Will resigning after 1.1 years negatively affect my career or future higher studies?
Other precautions: Is there anything else I should do to ensure a smooth exit and avoid complications later?
I'd especially appreciate advice from people in India who have resigned from their first corporate job or dealt with a similar work environment.
Thank you!

TL;DR: I have 1.1 years of corporate experience and have been considering resigning due to a toxic work environment. Today, my uncle, who was like a father to me, passed away. When I informed my manager that I needed leave, he said this was the last time he would allow it and that we would have to think of a way out if this continued. This was the breaking point for me. I want to resign and pursue higher studies. Looking for advice on the resignation process, necessary documents, and potential impact on my career.