Re:AI usage generates a fragile codebase
by nahumfarchi on Tuesday November 10, 2026 @06:57AM
(#50439061)
I recently spent a couple of hours reducing 1k lines of code produced by an LLM to about 100. Purely extrapolation, but imagine what if your project was 50k instead of 500k?
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Re:AI usage generates a fragile codebase
by user43928 on Tuesday November 10, 2026 @07:15AM
(#50439236)
If we scale that effort up from 1k lines to 500k, I'd be spending a few thousand hours optimizing the implementation.
Even if I ended up with a project of 50k lines, that would take multiple times the effort it took me to get this app ready for the initial release.
Realistically, I wouldn't have finished the project at all.
Re:AI usage generates a fragile codebase
by grim_io on Tuesday November 10, 2026 @07:17AM
(#50439251)
That's a bit silly to assume the LLM will 10x all of the code.
It doesn't happen often to me. If it does, I find it often handles extra edge cases I only would have found by using the customer as a guinea pig.
Re:AI usage generates a fragile codebase
by hologramofham on Tuesday November 10, 2026 @08:01AM
(#50439725)
> That's a bit silly to assume the LLM will 10x all of the code.
Where else did you think they came up with the "10x developer" thing?
(Yes I know LoC is a useless productivity measure, that's just a joke. Obviously it's number of PRs..)
Re:AI usage generates a fragile codebase
by grim_io on Tuesday November 10, 2026 @09:49AM
(#50441180)
Yeah you can 10x the code, if you are not required to review it thoroughly.
But in doing so, you will also 10x the features delivered. Maybe 5x, who knows?
But you definitely won't have to go through and decimate the generated code as a rule.
Re:AI usage generates a fragile codebase
by hologramofham on Tuesday November 10, 2026 @07:56AM
(#50439676)
You want to reduce lines of code? Next you'll be trying to reduce the number of PRs, then what will you use for productivity metrics?