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It really depends on how you use it. I really like using AI for prototyping new ideas (it can run on the background while I work on the main project) and for getting the boring grunt work (such as creating CRUD endpoints on a RESTful API) out of the way. Leaving me more time to focus on the code that really is challenging and need a deeper understanding of the business or the system as a whole.

> how can I utilize AI without degenerating my own abilities?

Couldn't the same statement, to some extent, be applied to using a sorting lib instead of writing your own sorting algorithm? Or how about using a language like python instead of manually handling memory allocation and garbage collection in C?

> What I want above all is AI that helps me become better at my job and continue to build skills and knowledge

So far, on my experience, the quality of what AI outputs is directly related to the quality of the input. I've seen some AI projects made by junior devs that a incredibly messy and confusing architecture, despite they using the same language and LLM model that I use? The main difference? The AI work was based on the patterns and architecture that I designed thanks to my knowledge, which also happens to ensure that the AI will produce less buggy software.

AI is a tool. As every other tool under the sun, it has strengths and weaknesses, it's our job, as software engineers to try it out and understand when/how to use it on our workflows, or if if fits our use cases at all.

If you disagree with the above statement, try replacing "AI" with "Docker", "Kubernetes", "Microservices architecture", "NoSQL", or any other tool/language/paradigm that was widely adopted in the software development industry until people realized it's awesome for some scenarios but not a be-all and end-all solution.

> This must be the case for so many discarded appliances these days, especially underengineered ones with common issues.

While it's true that lots of those old appliances are easily fixable, depending on how old they are it's better to replace due to other factors.

I just recently replaced my 10 years old washing machine instead of fixing it. I was absolutely surprised by the difference. The newer one uses less electricity, less water, washes and dries in half the time, and is absolutely silent.

I only hope it lasts as long as the old one.

Yeah, but how fast can you write compared to how fast you think?

How many times have you read a story card and by the time you finished reading it you thought "It's an easy task, should take me 1 hour of work to write the code and tests"?

In my experience, in most of those cases the AI can do the same amount of code writing in under 10 minutes, leaving me the other 50 minutes to review the code, make/ask for any necessary adjustments, and move on to another task.

Completely agree with you. I was working on the front-end of an application and I prompted Claude the following: "The endpoint /foo/bar is returning the json below ##json goes here##, show this as cards inside the component FooBaz following the existing design system".

In less than 5 minutes Claude created code that: - encapsulated the api call - modeled the api response using Typescript - created a re-usable and responsive ui component for the card (including a load state) - included it in the right part of the page

Even if I typed at 200wpm I couldn't produce that much code from such a simple prompt.

I also had similar experiences/gains refactoring back-end code.

This being said, there are cases in which writing the code yourself is faster than writing a detailed enough prompt, BUT those cases are becoming exception with new LLM iteration. I noticed that after the jump from Claude 3.7 to Claude 4 my prompts can be way less technical.

With everything that Pix offers but WhatsApp Pay doesn't, I don't think WhatsApp Pay would hold a candle even if it were launched before.

> there's no FLOSS app (AFAIK) to use it.

Does this mean that you also don't use your bank Android/iPhone APP? So your entire financial life is handled via a browser?

What changed my point of view regarding LLMs was when I realized how crucial context is in increasing output quality.

Treat the AI as a freelancer working on your project. How would you ask a freelancer to create a Kanban system for you? By simply asking "Create a Kanban system", or by providing them a 2-3 pages document describing features, guidelines, restrictions, requirements, dependencies, design ethos, etc?

Which approach will get you closer to your objective?

The same applies to LLM (when it comes to code generation). When well instructed, it can quickly generate a lot of working code, and apply the necessary fixes/changes you request inside that same context window.

It still can't generate senior-level code, but it saves hours when doing grunt work or prototyping ideas.

"Oh, but the code isn't perfect".

Nor is the code of the average jr dev, but their codes still make it to production in thousands of companies around the world.

"How to ask for it" is the most important part. As soon as you realize that you have to provide the AI with CONTEXT and clear instructions (you know, like a top-notch story card on a scrum board), the quality and assertiveness of the results increase a LOT.

Yes, it WON'T produce senior-level code for complex tasks, but it's great at tackling down junior to mid-level code generation/refactoring, with minor adjustments (just like a code review).

So, it's basically the same thing as having a freelancer jr dev at your disposal, but it can generate working code in 5 min instead of 5 hours.

It really depends on what you're trying to achieve.

I was trying to prototype a system and created a one-pager describing the main features, objectives, and restrictions. This took me about 45 minutes.

Then I feed it into Claude and asked to develop said system. It spent the next 15 minutes outputting file after file.

Then I ran "npm install" followed by "npm run" and got a "fully" (API was mocked) functional, mobile-friendly, and well documented system in just an hour of my time.

It'd have taken me an entire day of work to reach the same point.

This is definitely what happened in Brazil.

When Whatsapp launched, SMS still wasn't free, the exception being some carriers that offered "free" SMS to numbers of the same carrier if the sender was on a premium coverage plan. In sum, majority of the population was still paying $0,10-$0,20 despite already having data plans. So it was an easy win for WhatsApp.

I believe he meant that you (personal account) can use this feature to protect yourself from scam companies using Whatsapp Business to "cold call" you

ahahahahh, good catch. small oopsie from a non-native speaker.

> This is often not obvious, because the muscle you need to reinforce / train are often not actually the one hurting.

As someone who has done physical therapy for different issues, this is spot on. Lower back issues were actually due to weak hamstrings, and ankle issues due to weak calves.

Doing daily mobility and strength exercises as part of my mourning routine improved my health as a whole. A couple months in, and all random aches, pains, and soreness that i'd feel upon waking up or during the day were simply gone. And it only takes me 30 minutes a day. It's a pretty awesome alternative to doom scrolling.