[eru]

Keep in mind that the industry has grown so much, that in absolute terms we might have more people who knew assembly than ever before, even if the relative proportion has gone down.

Btw, compiler writing has also improved a lot. Thanks to projects like LLVM, you don't need to know assembly to write a compiler for your new language.

Also: there's plenty of people with interest in obscure technologies and languages. Have a look at the demo scene where people still write new material for the Commodore 64. Or the trend of making new games for NES and the original Gameboy. There are plenty of people who work close to the bare metal, because it's fun.