> I think a reasonable tradeoff, in theory, would be: use the LLM to help you explore the space of solution, then dive into the details and choose the path that feels right.

Oh absolutely. One of my favorite prompting patterns is "suggest options for X", followed by serval rounds back and forth to discuss tradeoffs and maybe introduce new ideas into the mix.

I also use LLMs to build exploratory prototypes. I'm working on a project today which I've had different coding agents build a total of four times already. Those explorations gave me the confidence to dictate a finished solution that I'm sure will work well against all sorts of future cases.