> ... has been declining for a few years IMO

Interesting: there's a huge correlation with everybody beginning to use LLMs.

And we dismiss it as being non-causal by saying it all started going downhill before the advent of LLMs?

I don't buy it. I think we're seeing the results of what happens when you hand the keys of the kingdom to LLMs.

This usually isn't a software quality issue, it's overcomplicated infrastructure failures cascading through a complex environment causing additional systems to fall over.

Coincidentally with massive programmer layoffs?

I blame bad vibes