rmoff’s random ramblings

Claude Code Isn't Going to Replace Data Engineers (Yet)

Rob Moffat tested Claude Code’s ability to generate a full dbt project for UK flood‑monitoring data. Using a concise prompt, the model produced a complete project structure, passed all dbt tests, and even fixed its own build errors. However, the output contained several design oversights—Python ingestion scripts, missing columns, and pagination bugs—that required human correction. The experiment shows Claude Code is a powerful productivity aid but not yet a substitute for skilled data engineers.