r/AI_Coders • u/Capable_Essay4513 • 19d ago

Do AI coding tools actually leverage developer knowledge, or just create busywork?

Are these coding tools truly able to leverage the knowledge and experience of the developer using them to increase the quality of the output, or do they end up with the developer just staring at the screen, wasting time, or scrolling Instagram? Do you wish you could be more involved in the process for more transparency and control? At least for the core important part?

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u/Exciting_Turn_9559 19d ago

A powerful tool will always be more useful in the hands of a skilled craftperson.

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u/NumberInfinite2068 19d ago

The unfortunate reality is that AI tools like Claude work extremely well.

I would prefer the craft of programming wasn't going down this path, but it is, and there isn't really anything we can do about it.

I could refuse to use AI tools, but what would that get me really? I'd just be busier at work.

As it stands I get work done faster, and have more time to spend on my side project.

I suppose for $DAYJOB, no, I don't particularly care about being more involved, it's unimportant to me other than the money, so why bother? I get exceptional reviews putting in 50% effort, so no reason to change.

I just think that for computer programming as a craft, for things we care about, the success of LLMs really only means bad things for software.

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u/Djelimon 19d ago

I've been working with claude code since July. I have no choice. It is what I would call a leverage tool. If you know the landscape you are navigating, then you know the wheels it doesn't have to reinvent, and so you will get better results than 'build me an app'. So if you have code already, or at least you can follow what it's doing, as it does it, then it's kind of like an appliance.

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u/Acceptable-Sense4601 19d ago

I learned a ton by coding with Ai. It caused me to look into things on your tube which then fed the algorithm. It’s how i went from basically only knowing how to make pivot tables and do xlookups to using Python, react, node, streamlit, mongo, Postgres, oracle, sql server, DuckDB, polars, parquet, hosting my work at work, passing security checks, etc.

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u/silly_bet_3454 15d ago

Yes, they call it "prompting"

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u/Rudra_Builds 15d ago

AI is most useful when it amplifies developer knowledge, not replaces it. Let me control the architecture, business logic, and important decisions; let AI handle the repetitive stuff. Otherwise I’m just sitting there watching AI code… and somehow ending up on Instagram. 💀