I've been experimenting with AI tools to build small apps, and at first, it feels like a game changer—like I can create new features in just minutes. However, as my projects grew bigger, I started running into a lot of issues—strange bugs, incomplete logic, and various random errors. I'm curious if anyone here has successfully taken an AI-generated project all the way to production, or if you find yourself rewriting most of the code by hand at some point.
9 Answers
AI excels in solving problems it's trained on, which is why it's good for creating single features. But once you try to connect things, it struggles. You have to be precise because it doesn't truly understand the systems—only the smaller segments of code. If you don't grasp the system well, the AI won't deliver quality results either.
People who struggle most with AI are usually those with zero coding experience. I'd recommend spending some time on online courses to get basic programming knowledge. This way, you can give better prompts to AI and catch obvious mistakes it makes.
I've faced similar issues! I built a CLI tool to help guide the AI on tasks like adding pages or route handlers, which has improved my experience. The key is giving templates and keeping things in small steps for more consistent outcomes. You can check it out if you’re interested in improving your workflow!
Honestly, I can’t write a feature without editing it by hand. It sometimes gets the functionality right, but it often ends up adding unnecessary complexity that requires heavy edits, so it’s really hit or miss for saving time.
I've noticed that too—most AI tools are perfect for prototyping, but they can start to fall apart at scale. The closest I've come to production is with a tool called mgx; it handled larger structures far better than the others I tried, although it still needed cleanup. It's the first time I felt like I didn't have to scrap everything and start from scratch.
During a work project, I was vibe coding a node.js app with AI, which sparked a lot of great ideas, but I still reviewed every line of code. It's worth mentioning that this app isn’t for production yet, just handling some non-sensitive data.
I usually use AI to handle small parts and then tweak them afterward. I think of it more as a way to speed up the typing process rather than a replacement for coding. In the end, I'm still the one who 'wrote' the code, just not literally typing every line myself.
Totally agree! I find the most effective use of AI is when I already know exactly what I need and use it to save time on the typing. It helps with the bits and pieces but doesn’t create full modules automatically for me.
Exactly! AI is great for the smaller chunks, but when it comes to integrating everything, real dev skills are essential.
I only use AI for generating mock patterns or to check configurations. I don't rely on it for any major coding tasks since I don't want to risk the integrity of my code.
Yes! I've just rolled out a huge production site, and I didn’t face the common issues others are mentioning. With the right approach, AI can definitely work!
So true! It's great at addressing individual issues, but when you need a cohesive system, that’s where having a developer's insight significantly helps.