If we look away from the time zone difference, I just don't see how the US-based programmers will be able to compete against - say - European programmers, if the WFH trend continues. If WFH is truly here to stay, then that's one protective barrier down. The language barrier is almost non-existent these days, as most European devs can communicate just fine. The time zone is another, which I think is harder to overcome...but it's usually worse for the Europeans. At least with one European MS office, meetings would have to follow Seattle time.

I'm not saying this to put down all the excellent US devs and engineers - but when total compensation in the US can be 2-4 times higher than in very comparable European countries, at least you know there are many European devs that would grab the chance even at a steep discount. US(ish) salaries without having to move to the US is a very nice situation for devs in various European countries.

But all in all, I'm really excited to see what the WFH trend will bring us on a global level.