AI Coding Without the Vibes

Rather than entirely avoiding or fully embracing AI, students and professionals should use it strategically by dividing tasks into "doing" and "checking" stages—leveraging AI for initial work while maintaining personal responsibility for verification and quality control. The author argues that completely deferring to AI prevents the development of critical judgment and genuine understanding, skills that are essential for long-term competence and that atrophy without practice. This balanced approach allows people to prepare for an AI-integrated world while preserving the cognitive skills necessary to catch AI's inevitable errors and maintain mastery of their field.