'RIP Data Scientists': LLMs compress 9-day DS workflow into a 13-minute prompt
mdancho84 · x · 2026-10-20
mdancho84 (100K followers) argues LLMs killed data science: the 2020 workflow took 9 days (cleaning, features, training, viz, presenting); by 2026 it's one prompt plus a 13-minute wait and human review. Key claims: a junior analyst with ChatGPT outperformed a PhD-level senior DS; data science was 'a gap between business and engineering' that LLMs closed, killing modeling, analysis, and pipelines alike — the problems still need solving, just not by humans. Illustrated with a 'Data Scientist 2012–2026, killed by Claude+ChatGPT' tombstone meme. Contentious but indicative of industry sentiment.
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