TechTalk Atlantic – Digital Nova Scotia – Leading Digital Industry

From COBOL to Co-Pilot: 70 Years of “Soon We Won’t Need Programmers Anymore”

VOLTA 1800 Argyle Street #Unit 801, Halifax, NS, Canada

Speaker: Andrew Burke (Co-Founder, Developer at BeanCounter Technologies) Join us for a captivating journey through seven decades of tech predictions, hype cycles, and the enduring spirit of developers. From the early promises of COBOL automating business logic to the current buzz around AI tools like GitHub Copilot, this TechTalk Atlantic event explores a recurring theme in tech: "We won’t need programmers anymore"—and why that never quite comes true. We'll dig into the historical moments when new technologies promised to replace coders, examine why those predictions fell short, and discuss what today's AI moment means for the future of software development. Whether you’re a seasoned engineer, an emerging dev, or just tech-curious, this talk offers a mix of history, insight, and a healthy dose of humor. Expect real talk, bold questions, and a forward-looking conversation on what it means to be a programmer in an age of rapid automation. Spoiler: programmers aren’t going anywhere—but their tools (and titles) are evolving fast. 🧠 Insights from the past. 💡 Lessons for the future. CODE OF CONDUCT Agenda: 6:00PM – 6:15PM: Welcome & Registration 6:15PM – 6:20PM: Sponsor Speech 6:20PM – 7:00PM: Speaker Presentation 7:00PM – 7:45PM: Networking 7:45PM – 8:00PM: Program End

Free

Right Tool, Right Task: Navigating AI with Precision

VOLTA 1800 Argyle Street #Unit 801, Halifax, NS, Canada

Speaker: Jaswanth Tata / Murtaza Lookmanji AI is everywhere—and so is confusion. This practical, no-hype session shows you how to match the right tool to the right task so you get the right outcome. We’ll demystify agents, chatbots, copilots, visualizers, and automation platforms, compare their strengths and limits, and give you a simple decision framework you can reuse at work tomorrow. Expect crisp selection criteria, real Halifax use‑cases, red‑flag questions for vendors, quick evaluators (ROI, risk, privacy), and a takeaway matrix mapping common roles and workflows to proven tools. Leave with a vetted shortlist, smarter guardrails, and the confidence to say “no” to shiny‑but‑wrong AI choices.   CODE OF CONDUCT Agenda: 6:00PM – 6:15PM: Welcome & Registration 6:15PM – 6:20PM: Sponsor Speech 6:20PM – 7:00PM: Speaker Presentation 7:00PM – 7:45PM: Networking 7:45PM – 8:00PM: Program End

Free