Am I focusing on the wrong skills as a CS student in the AI era? (Need brutally honest advice) [D]

I'm a Computer Science student about to start my 4th semester this September in Pakistan. My long-term goals are:

- Maintain a high GPA because I want to pursue a fully funded Master's abroad.

- Eventually work at a top tech company (FAANG or similar).

- Become a genuinely good software engineer rather than just someone who can build projects.

A bit about me:

I actually enjoy programming. I like logic, problem-solving, debugging, and understanding how things work under the hood. My initial plan for the rest of this year (August–December) was to focus on:

- Java

- Spring Boot

- Backend development

- LeetCode and DSA

- SQL

- System Design (starting with the basics)

- Building projects and putting them on GitHub

However, my brother (he's also studying CS) has a very different opinion.

He's heavily into AI, automations, AI agents, and vibe coding. He told me that spending so much time learning to code deeply is becoming less valuable because AI can already generate entire applications. He even mentioned one of his friends vibe-coded a complex website with AI that was supposedly extremely secure and feature-rich.

His argument is that I should focus more on AI workflows and automation instead of traditional software engineering.

My opinion is a little different.

I feel like AI is an amazing tool, but someone still has to understand:

- Architecture

- System Design

- Databases

- Security

- Scalability

- Performance

- Debugging

- Clean code

- Software engineering principles

My thinking is that AI can generate code, but it can't replace understanding why the code works or making good engineering decisions.

Now I'm questioning whether I'm becoming outdated before I've even started.

So I'd really appreciate advice from people already working in the industry.

Some questions I'd love honest answers to:

1. If you were a 4th-semester CS student in 2026, what would you spend the next 4–6 months learning?

2. Is investing heavily in Java, Spring Boot, DSA, and backend development still worth it?

3. How important is LeetCode today? Is it still necessary for top companies?

4. Should I prioritize AI engineering, LLMs, agents, MCPs, and automations instead?

5. If your goal was to maximize your career opportunities over the next 5–10 years, what roadmap would you follow?

6. What skills do you think junior developers are overvaluing today, and what are they undervaluing?

I'm not looking for motivational answers. If you think my plan is outdated, tell me. If you think it's solid, tell me why. If you think I'm missing something important, I'd genuinely like to know.

I'd especially appreciate responses from senior engineers, hiring managers, or people currently working at large tech companies.

Thanks in advance!