Why stronger light anti-aircraft guns would not stop carriers

Would more numerous quick-firing guns blunt the rise of the aircraft carrier?

No; aircraft still provide reconnaissance, air defense, and offset strike at lower risk than committing ships directly.

Better quick-firing guns would make air attack costlier but would not remove the carrier's ability to scout, defend a fleet, and strike beyond gun range. Aircraft put fewer people and less capital at risk than sending a destroyer into the same reconnaissance or attack problem. The discussion compares this logic with modern drones, which grow larger and more expensive as users demand more roles from each airframe.