---
title: "AI coding creates two kinds of debt. You’re only measuring one"
url: https://daily.dev/posts/ai-coding-creates-two-kinds-of-debt-you-re-only-measuring-one-6qai3eupv
source_url: https://leaddev.com/ai/ai-coding-creates-two-kinds-of-debt-youre-only-measuring-one
type: article
source: "LeadDev"
published: 2026-06-18T07:02:50.423Z
updated: 2026-06-18T07:03:12.031Z
tags: ["productivity", "leadership", "ai-coding", "technical-debt"]
reading_time: 10
upvotes: 28
comments: 2
language: en
---

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# AI coding creates two kinds of debt. You’re only measuring one

**[LeadDev](https://daily.dev/sources/leaddev)** · 10 min read · 28 upvotes · 2 comments

## Summary

A new concept called 'cognitive debt' describes the accumulated loss of understanding of what a system does and why — distinct from technical debt. Coined by Dr. Margaret-Anne Storey, it emerges when AI generates code faster than engineers can build mental models of it. Infobip's longitudinal study of 225 interns found that AI-era cohorts showed significantly lower technical skill growth (+1.56 vs +2.50) compared to pre-AI cohorts, even as satisfaction scores and NPS rose. The key differentiator wasn't AI usage frequency but cognitive engagement: interns who understood and questioned AI output grew, while those who passively accepted it stagnated. Practical countermeasures include 'try first, AI second' habits, AI-free checkpoints, measuring skill trajectory over satisfaction, and team retrospectives that explicitly surface shared understanding gaps.

## Full article

daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: <https://leaddev.com/ai/ai-coding-creates-two-kinds-of-debt-youre-only-measuring-one>

## Community discussion

Top comments from developers on daily.dev.

**@tokstesla** · 0 upvotes

> This is the real debt we seem oblivious to.

**@josesoaresifthenpay** · 0 upvotes

> I think any dev by now is aware of cognitive debt, its been widespread knowledge, and devs are not oblivious, management are, mostly because they refuse to listen.

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---

Tags: [#productivity](https://daily.dev/tags/productivity), [#leadership](https://daily.dev/tags/leadership), [#ai-coding](https://daily.dev/tags/ai-coding), [#technical-debt](https://daily.dev/tags/technical-debt)

[View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/ai-coding-creates-two-kinds-of-debt-you-re-only-measuring-one-6qai3eupv)