The Next Billion Seconds with Mark Pesce ALWAYS IMPERFECT: "VIBE SLOGGING"
Sep 23, 2025
John Allsopp, an experienced web and software practitioner and conference organizer, joins to explore the transformative impact of AI on software development. He discusses whether programmers might become obsolete or merely act as cleanup crews for messy AI-generated code. The conversation dives into the intricate balance between AI’s efficiency in tool creation and the complexity it introduces. John also shares insights about non-technical users leveraging AI to build applications, raising questions about the expectations versus realities in engineering.
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AI As An Accelerant When Guided
- Mark's citation tool will be released free because AI helped him solve the hard parts quickly.
- The experience demonstrates AI's role as an accelerant when guided correctly.
Code Generation Is Only One Piece
- Current focus is on code generation, which is only a small part of software engineering.
- Important activities like discovery, architecture, and integrating systems receive less AI attention so far.
Spreadsheets Are Shadow Software
- Non-professional tools like spreadsheets already implement complex business logic and will be impacted by AI.
- Turning these ad-hoc systems into proper applications can boost productivity but increase systemic risk.