Anthropic is testing a new model, so called Claude Mythos, described internally as "by far the most powerful AI model we've ever developed."
It scores dramatically higher on coding, reasoning, and cybersecurity. So much so that Anthropic itself flagged it as posing "unprecedented cybersecurity risks."
Cybersecurity stocks dropped 4–9% on the news alone.
But here's what nobody is talking about.
The Quiet Erosion
As AI writes more of our code, something quiet is happening. Anthropic's own research found developers using AI assistance scored 17% lower on comprehension tests.
The productivity gains? Not even statistically significant.
"You need deep skills to oversee AI output. But AI overuse erodes those exact skills."
Aviation calls it "automation-induced skill degradation." We don't have a name for it in software yet. But the pattern is identical.
The Real Paradox
As these models get exponentially better at writing, debugging, and even breaking code — the engineers who understand WHY code works become more valuable, not less.
Use AI as a collaborator, not a crutch. The developers who matter most won't prompt the fastest — they'll be the ones who can still think when the tools fall short.
Sources
Fortune — Claude Mythos Report
Anthropic Research
Anthropic Internal Study