AI-Powered Development: Using LLMs Effectively as a Developer

AI Is a Tool, Not a Replacement

LLMs are incredibly powerful for development — when used correctly. The key is knowing where they excel and where they'll lead you astray.

Where AI Excels

1. Boilerplate generation — CRUD endpoints, test scaffolding, type definitions
2. Code translation — Converting between languages or frameworks
3. Documentation — Generating JSDoc, README sections, API docs
4. Exploration — "Show me 3 approaches to implement X"
5. Debugging — "Why might this produce a race condition?"

Where AI Struggles

1. Novel architecture decisions — It optimizes for common patterns
2. Business logic — It doesn't know your domain
3. Security — It may suggest insecure patterns that "work"
4. Performance — It writes correct but not necessarily optimal code
5. Consistency — It doesn't remember your project conventions

Effective Prompting Patterns

// Instead of: "Write a user authentication system"
// Be specific:

"Write a Nuxt 3 server middleware that:
- Reads a JWT from the Authorization header
- Verifies it using jose library
- Attaches the decoded user to event.context.user
- Returns 401 for missing/invalid tokens
- Skips auth for routes matching /api/public/**

Use TypeScript, handle edge cases, include error types."

The Review-Everything Rule

Never commit AI-generated code without:

1. Reading every line — Understand what it does
2. Testing edge cases — AI often misses boundaries
3. Checking security — Look for hardcoded values, missing validation
4. Verifying dependencies — It may suggest packages that don't exist
5. Matching conventions — Adapt to your project's style

My Workflow

1. Think first — Design the solution mentally
2. Generate scaffold — Use AI for the boring parts
3. Review and adapt — Make it fit your project
4. Test thoroughly — AI doesn't run your tests
5. Refactor — Clean up to your standards

The Learning Trap

If you can't write the code without AI, you don't understand it well enough to maintain it. Use AI to accelerate, not to skip learning.

AI makes good developers faster. It doesn't make non-developers into developers.