Is GPT-5.5 finally a 4.7-tier model? Did DeepSeek V4 just close the gap with Anthropic? And what does it mean that a senior ML engineer says he can't out-code Claude anymore? Co-hosts Shimin Zhang, Dan Lasky, and Rahul Yadav are joined by special guest Nathan Lubchenco — ML engineer and Substack author of *The future was yesterday* (https://nathanlubchenco.substack.com/) — on ADI Pod #23 (April 28, 2026).

This episode covers OpenAI's GPT-5.5 release, DeepSeek V4 (1.6T base / 49B active params with 1M context), Meta's new Model Capability Initiative tracking US employee keystrokes and mouse movements, a Levenshtein-distance study on coding-model over-editing, the 2026 Stanford AI Index report, and a deep-dive interview on how to hire software engineers when the agents are already better at coding than the candidates.

Key takeaways

— Models are now consistently better at coding than even senior ML engineers, by their own admission. Late-2026 may be when they cross the median software engineer.

— Coding-model over-editing is measurable (Levenshtein distance on boolean-flip tasks) and instruction-followable — explicit "minimum-edit" prompts close most of the gap.

— The US is unusually a slow adopter of a major technological wave. Workplace AI usage is highest in emerging economies, not the developed world.

— "The task is not the job" — humans remain indispensable on the bundling dimensions: catching what customers don't say, and avoiding interactions that end up on social media.

— Software engineering interviews should include the candidate's personal harness, with company-provided API keys for equity. LeetCode optimizes for the wrong signal in 2026.

— DeepSeek V4 closing the gap with Mythos in 3–6 months is what makes the bubble too geopolitically important to fail.

Chapters

• (00:00) - Cold Open & Welcome

Resources mentioned

**Models & news**

• OpenAI — Introducing GPT-5.5: https://openai.com/index/introducing-gpt-5-5/

• Engadget — DeepSeek promises its new AI model has world-class reasoning: https://www.engadget.com/ai/deepseek-promises-its-new-ai-model-has-world-class-reasoning-115733512.html

• Reuters — Meta to start capturing employee mouse movements, keystrokes for AI training data: https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/meta-start-capturing-employee-mouse-movements-keystrokes-ai-training-data-2026-04-21/

**Post-processing articles**

• "Coding Models Are Doing Too Much" — Levenshtein-distance over-editing study (nrehiew): https://nrehiew.github.io/blog/minimal_editing/

• Luis Garicano (Silicon Continent) — Why Desk Jobs Survive ("The task is not the job"): https://www.siliconcontinent.com/p/why-desk-jobs-survive-and-amodei

• 2026 AI Index Report — Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI: https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2026-ai-index-report

**Deep dive**

• Nathan Lubchenco — Interviewing Software Engineers in the Age of AI: https://nathanlubchenco.substack.com/p/interviewing-software-engineers-in

• Nathan Lubchenco — *The future was yesterday* Substack home: https://nathanlubchenco.substack.com/

**Dan's rant**

• Ars Technica — Anthropic tested removing Claude Code from the Pro plan: https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/04/anthropic-tested-removing-claude-code-from-the-pro-plan/

**Rahul's rampage**

• Sebastian Mallaby — *The Infinity Machine* (book on Demis Hassabis and DeepMind)

• Philipp Dubach — Do Not Disturb My Circles (Archimedes essay): https://philippdubach.com/posts/do-not-disturb-my-circles/

**Bubble watch**

• TechCrunch — Two college kids raise $5.1M pre-seed to build an AI social network in iMessage: https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/24/two-college-kids-raise-a-5-1-million-pre-seed-to-build-an-ai-social-network-in-imessage/

• Toby Ord — Hourly Costs for AI Agents: https://www.tobyord.com/writing/hourly-costs-for-ai-agents

• CNBC — OpenAI reportedly missed revenue targets, shares of Oracle and chip stocks falling: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/28/openai-reportedly-missed-revenue-targets-shares-of-oracle-and-these-chip-stocks-are-falling.html

About ADI Pod

ADI Pod (Artificial Developer Intelligence) is a weekly podcast about AI and software development for working developers. Co-hosts Shimin Zhang, Dan Lasky, and Rahul Yadav go through hundreds of links and dozens of newsletters every week so you don't have to.

This week's special guest: **Nathan Lubchenco** — ML engineer and author of *The future was yesterday* on Substack, where he writes about AI and software engineering.

• Website: https://www.adipod.ai

• Email: [email protected]