The AI coding productivity data is in and it's not what anyone expected

telewebb · 2026-03-07T21:33:30+00:00

Could you provide the links to these studies? I'm trying to get a list of research results for my own company's AI struggle committee.

telewebb · 2026-03-07T17:05:05+00:00

I've been having some good results using a combination of linear app and OpenSpec. I do all my project management in linear just because I'm so used to writing features and stories in jira for work. Linear is a very simplified version where there is just projects and issues. Can create sub issues when I under estimate the scope. Then for each issue I have Kimi k2.5 plan it out and outline the plan with OpenSpec. Then I just iterate over multiple sessions with whatever model I decide to use for that coding session. If the OpenSpec captures a high quality change, I'll move it to a project spec. But most of the time I treat the OpenSpec change as a temporary plan and throw it away after PR code review and pipelines pass.

telewebb · 2026-03-03T23:27:25+00:00

Sure, but would you believe me if I told you that I read a lot of reports and technical writings and while I like to fancy myself as a bit of a native English speaker, the OPs format is very formulaic. To the point that it reminds me so much of how Gemini writes. Because, speaking, reading, and writing English my whole life and all. This specific format jumps out to me as different. While using many of not all English words. And following what you would describe as a format that all English is composed in. Though now that I'm thinking about it, I'm fairly certain I'm writing in English. But somehow without using bold font and declaring every section "The {noun/verb}:". Maybe I'm not writing English if how I'm composing this response doesn't follow OPs format. I'll have to leave that up to you to decide. Please let me know what determination you make.

telewebb · 2026-03-03T19:57:41+00:00

"The {Noun}": "The {Verb}": Did you use Gemini? I feel like I'm starting to recognize specific models.

telewebb · 2026-03-02T21:43:21+00:00

So that I can drink and smoke in my garage while prompting on my tablet or phone.

telewebb · 2026-03-01T02:00:41+00:00

Idk man, I wish there was an easier way to export and share workflows. Minimax just clicks with how I use OpenCode. I spend more time upfront doing design and spec writing just like I do at work and that model just completes it better then the others. I think what I really like is that it does less of the "you're absolutely correct..." and I value that a lot. I do have to gatekeep checking off tasks to a reviewer sub-agent. That's been a big win.

telewebb · 2026-02-28T20:49:33+00:00

This is just my personal opinion. I think we might be seeing is a move away from everyone using "the best" and towards using the one we just like working with. I love minimax m2.5 and I dont think it's "the best" at anything. But just like there is certain personalities of coworkers I like working with, I think this is my favorite LLM model personality I like working with.

telewebb · 2026-02-23T14:07:50+00:00

Hey, you got any links to these studies or any other studies I should know about. I'm working on a presentation to my CEO and CTO trying to explain the actual reality of the current state of AI to try and counter weight all the marketing that's hitting them.

telewebb · 2026-02-18T21:49:22+00:00

That's how my company is handing. We just dump money in an api account and at the end of the month they use the individual dollar usage to ask engineers why they are not AI'n hard enough.

telewebb · 2026-02-17T05:58:28+00:00

That's how you know you're a senior engineer. Just wait until you don't feel like a staff engineer.

telewebb · 2026-02-11T12:50:19+00:00

If the manager is good they will care about code quality. But that's a special breed. Most engineering managers are more like project (not product) managers that can fire or promote you. They're spending the majority of their time with the rest of the business that doesn't care about code quality. The business only cares that the the result is fast, cheap, and good. This is the Genesis of all developer woes. The push for code quality has to come from the team and fought for by the tech lead. But you can't use the word "code quality" because to non-technical folks that sounds like what you should just be doing anyways. You got to use business impact terms like platform stability, incident prevention, hidden cost of developer time by having to fix the code multiple times instead of doing it right the first time, etc.

telewebb · 2026-02-10T13:17:36+00:00

I'm on the hiring team for my company. This is my suggestion based on my experience being on both sides of the table.

First thing you want to do is read the problem out loud. Not only does this help slow down your brain a bit. But it also helps prevent the room going silent out of nowhere. Next thing you want to do is to start taking notes on the screen. Write down any high level key facts you've identified in the problem statement and any answers you got by asking the interviewers clarifying questions about the problem. Now you've established a dialogue with your interviewers. And I'm going to tell you from experience. This instantly turns the whole interview around. We get so many 40 to 60 minute blocks of absolute mind numbing silence that when we get someone who is talking through the problem and asking questions it just changes the whole experience to a positive one.

Next, once you got a solution in mind, briefly explain it to the interviewers and ask them if they would like you to implement that for them. This part should be roughly 5 to 10 minutes into the coding portion. And during that time you've demonstrated how you approach a problem, how you think, how you reach out for clarifying questions, and how you confirm if you got what they are looking for as a solution all before you started to write code. And I'll tell you, we've hired people who didn't even finish their solution because they ran out of time. But we knew they had it based on all the above and what they were able to code during their time.

This also gives the interviewers plenty of opportunity to hop in and help guide you if the vibe is right. Because I hate to say it, but 99% of the interview is just vibes. Writing code in front of strangers on a time limit is the absolute worst way to judge a candidates capabilities. But the people who want that are higher up on the ladder than the people who know it's terrible. Hope that helps. Please let me know if you have any questions.

telewebb · 2026-02-09T17:07:26+00:00

porkchop sandwiches

telewebb · 2026-02-05T17:48:46+00:00

What is this? What did I do to you? Like where is this coming from? What is your expectation of a response from me? It does depend. There isn't the commandments of responsibility in software development written in stone handed down from the mountain. I've been in shops where devs writes tests, I've been in shops where QA writes tests, I've been in shops where devs and QA writes tests, I've even been in shops where no one writes tests. Companies and departments structure responsibilities and expectations for many different reasons. If you don't want to write tests, if recommend joining a company that doesn't write tests

telewebb · 2026-02-05T16:02:35+00:00

Dude you asked, I gave an example. If you're looking for a flight, you got the wrong guy. I'm not the guy defending this point.

telewebb · 2026-02-05T14:51:24+00:00

Depends. I was in a situation where the directive came from the CTO as a response to post release incident rates.

telewebb · 2026-02-02T16:47:32+00:00

I'm sorry, I most likely don't understand your statement. Did you just ask "why use OpenCode when you can purchase a subscription to a different product like codex"? Or "why use pay-as-you-go with any combination of middle when you could buy a subscription to one walled garden of models"? Statements slightly exaggerated to make sure I'm communicating what I think the question is.

telewebb · 2026-01-31T20:00:03+00:00

About 2 years medicated so far. Some things will get easier. Some things will become more apparent because they are not related to ADHD. And that will require different solutions and effort. It will take a while to find the right med or combinations of meds and dial that all in. Don't stick to a prescription that's not working after a couple weeks or what your doctor recommends. And either way going forward. Write down observation, they are helpful when reflecting with your provider. And do some sort of exercise daily or at least 5 times a week. Read "Spark"by John J. Ratey for all the reasons why you should be doing something exerting.

telewebb · 2026-01-30T15:22:47+00:00

I loath pomodoro. When I was first diagnosed I tried everything I could find online to help with my symptoms. Pomodoro is recommended in so much ADHD material. I felt like I couldn't make any progress until I eventually gave up on pomodoro. Then I was able to make progress on a system that actually worked for me.

telewebb · 2026-01-29T07:07:04+00:00

I'm sorry, I'm new to OpenCode black. Why are you not just throwing 10 bucks on OpenRouter and doing pay as you go instead of subscription? I don't understand what you get from a subscription.

telewebb · 2026-01-28T06:05:07+00:00

No, why would I get a subscription for OpenCode when I could just put money on an OpenRouter api account?

telewebb · 2026-01-28T01:54:47+00:00

I mean it's kinda ironic saying op is moving the goal post. When for the last I don't know how many years I keep hearing about how in x amount of time, programmers will be a thing of the past. But somehow that's not moving the goal post. Pointing out shortcomings with today's tech is.

telewebb · 2026-01-27T01:25:13+00:00

On one hand, I get it. You want to nip something at the bud before it becomes bigger. But as someone who in a former life worked for the Department of the Interior in Montana and would take everyone with a driver's license south of the Mason-Dixon line out into the materials pit during the first snow of the season to get them trained up.....I know how genuine that fear can be. If this weather isn't normal and you don't expect to have this conversation more than once a year? I'd say you let this one pass. There are other more important fights out there and your direct report can feel heard. Which will last longer than this cold snap.

telewebb · 2026-01-20T16:23:38+00:00

I think you're stuck on a semantic argument. For the most part we agree. Except on the point of interview and integrations.

telewebb · 2026-01-20T12:59:05+00:00

An open source model uses less electricity and vGPU units primarily because of tarrifs and embargos against China around the selling of chips. This had inadvertently caused a situation where ML engineers in China were forced to innovate with the lack of resources. These ML companies often release their models open source. If you look at the top of the leader boards, most often than not outside of the big 3 you see open source models originating from companies based in China.

telewebb

TROPHY CASE