Nope this is just not true. You can crank out correct HDL all day with https://clash-lang.org/ https://clash-lang.org/, and the layout etc. work that takes tha

Nope this is just not true. You can crank out correct HDL all day with https://clash-lang.org/ https://clash-lang.org/, and the layout etc. work that takes that into "real hardware" while not trivial, are less creative optimization problems. This is a post-hoc rationalization behind the decrepitness of the (esp Western[1]) hardware industry, and the rampant credentialism that arises when the growth of the moribund rent-seekers doesn't create enough new jobs. [1]: Go to Shenzhen and the old IP theft and FOSS tradition has merged in a funny hybrid that's a lot more agile and interesting than whatever the US companies are up to.