The Power of Craft - Staying in the Driver’s Seat of AI-Assisted Development

(From keynote at JManc one-day open space event, Autotrader Manchester, Fri 10/7/26.)

It’s getting harder to ignore the elephant in the room: AI is reshaping software development. For many of us, this brings up a dizzying mix of emotions. Are we being left behind if we don’t "vibe code"? Is it even possible to keep up with the disorienting pace of change? It’s easy to feel alienated by the huge impact of AI in our industry. But approached with the spirit of exploration, AI can enhance the best parts of our work - helping us to experiment, learn, and solve problems in new ways.

This is an engaging, story-driven exploration of how the core values of great software engineering - the ones we’ve relied on for decades - are actually our greatest advantage in an AI-assisted world. Together, we’ll cut through the noise and find a balanced, human approach that embraces both curiosity and craft.

Transcript

1. The Power of Craft Staying in the Driver’s Seat of AI-Assisted Development @ClareSudbery
2. These are all true statements about me. Hands up if you feel the same. @ClareSudbery
3. I’ve used LLMs to help me build software-based tools, and it has been a lot of fun. @ClareSudbery
4. I’ve used LLMs to help me do all sorts of stuff, and it has been incredibly frustrating. @ClareSudbery
5. I’m excited about the future of our industry and the role LLMs will play. @ClareSudbery
6. I’m scared about the future of our industry and the role LLMs will play. @ClareSudbery
7. I’m excited about the future of humanity and the role LLMs will play. @ClareSudbery
8. I’m scared about the future of humanity and the role LLMs will play. @ClareSudbery
9. I try to keep up with what’s going on in the “AI” space, but it’s exhausting. @ClareSudbery
10. So, now you know… You’re not alone. @ClareSudbery
11. Upcoming: Some stories that tell you a little… …about AI and its relationship to software dev. @ClareSudbery
12. Story 1. Building a thing @ClareSudbery
13. @ClareSudbery Things breaking repeatedly
14. @ClareSudbery Enough. We need tests!
15. @ClareSudbery "We need tests" is not enough
16. @ClareSudbery So addictive!
17. @ClareSudbery Diminishing returns. Uh-huh.
18. @ClareSudbery Training an LLM to do TDD
19. @ClareSudbery The LLM writes its own processes
20. @ClareSudbery Independent specification
21. @ClareSudbery LLM-AUGMENTED CODING: GOLDEN RULES 1. Encourage the LLM to ask clarifying questions 2. Move in small steps. Big steps feel fast but they quickly slow you down. 3. Always start with tests. - a. Ask the LLM to write tests before code. - b. Check and refine the tests. - c. Ask the LLM to make the tests pass by implementing the solution. - d. Keep running all tests to make sure nothing is broken. 4. If you’re going to read one thing, make it be the tests (not the code) 5. Ask the LLM to summarise conversations. Persist those summaries in files. 6. Throw things away! Start again from scratch. Beware the sunk cost fallacy. 7. Give the LLM examples that will help it to understand 8. Ask the LLM for multiple options, with explanations of pros and cons
22. Story 2. The Genie and the Grump: Kent Beck’s Journey into the AI Wilderness @ClareSudbery
23. “surfing the auto-complete” @ClareSudbery
24. "The genie doesn’t want to do TDD. It wants to write the code and then write tests that pass." @ClareSudbery
25. ”This increase in decision density is hard on the brain." @ClareSudbery
26. @ClareSudbery
27. "The best analogy I could find is a genie. It grants you wishes." @ClareSudbery
28. @ClareSudbery
29. "I find joy & satisfaction in matching difficult patterns... I absolutely get this sense of pattern matching when augmented coding." @ClareSudbery
30. "I find joy & satisfaction in matching difficult patterns... I absolutely get this sense of pattern matching when augmented coding." @ClareSudbery
31. But… @ClareSudbery
32. Story 3. The hype-fuelled dumpster fire @ClareSudbery
33. 1.5 degrees global heating is hurtling towards us Tipping points are real @ClareSudbery
34. @ClareSudbery
35. @ClareSudbery July 2024
36. Story 4. The battle of the zealots @ClareSudbery
37. @ClareSudbery
38. @ClareSudbery
39. @ClareSudbery
40. @ClareSudbery
41. For the enthusiasts… “It has become very easy to do things without context or mastery, and the downstream costs are often invisible to the person who incurs them. All they see is the win.” @ClareSudbery
42. And meanwhile, the skeptics… “As claims seem to get bigger and blowsier and less tethered to reality, the skeptics react with escalating cynicism. They hear the enthusiasts, but they no longer believe a word they say.” @ClareSudbery
43. “I don’t WANT to be an AI hater. I studied AI in school! I think it’s neat! I feel like I’m getting backed into a corner where I have to be a hater because I’m the only one left who gives a sh*t about reality! Is any of it real?” @ClareSudbery
44. “To chart a safe path between the Scylla of missed windows and the Charybdis of systems melting into slop, we need eyes on both threats as we coordinate, synchronize, and pull together. Hard.” @ClareSudbery
45. “in my spare time over the weekend, I finished a migration we gave up for dead two months ago!! @ClareSudbery
46. YAY, AWESOME POSSUM! GO YOU! @ClareSudbery
47. Get excited! Tell your coworkers! @ClareSudbery
48. “P.S., if there was any downstream cleanup work… I’d love to hear about it.” @ClareSudbery
49. Especially if there’s a power dynamic and people might be afraid to speak up. @ClareSudbery
50. And if you’re a skeptic… @ClareSudbery
51. …doing cleanup downstream of someone else’s great AI vibe coding triumph… @ClareSudbery
52. Don’t just mutter bitterly to your fellow travelers. @ClareSudbery
53. Bring it up in a responsible, friendly way to the person who caused it. @ClareSudbery
54. Close the loop. It’s how we learn. @ClareSudbery
55. @ClareSudbery
56. What would it take for you to feel comfortable shipping code to production without reading it? @ClareSudbery
57. Better evals? Better tests? Better feature flags, guardrails, observability? @ClareSudbery
58. @ClareSudbery
59. Landing in a neat pair-synchronized way. https://www.instagram.com/p/BsY1qBeg5 Qg @ClareSudbery
60. ALL LINKS FROM TODAY @ClareSudbery
61. I try to keep up with what’s going on in the “AI” space, but it’s exhausting. @ClareSudbery
62. How DO you keep up with it all? @ClareSudbery
63. DON’T PANIC Nobody is up to date with all this stuff! @ClareSudbery
64. THE HYPE @ClareSudbery
65. HUMAN COGNITIVE ABILITIES @ClareSudbery
66. PRODUCTIVITY & JOB LOSSES @ClareSudbery
67. THE ECONOMY & THE BUBBLE @ClareSudbery
68. ETHICS @ClareSudbery
69. SECURITY & RELIABILITY @ClareSudbery
70. THE PLANET @ClareSudbery
71. EFFECTIVE LLM USE @ClareSudbery