--- title: I use AI when I code. And sometimes it makes me feel... description: Using AI coding assistants can trigger feelings of guilt and imposter syndrome, as if the work doesn't count without manual struggle. The author reflects on... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/i-use-ai-when-i-code-and-sometimes-it-makes-me-feel-like-i-m-cheating--lq7bxw0bv twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: I use AI when I code. And sometimes it makes me feel like I’m cheating. | daily.dev og:description: Using AI coding assistants can trigger feelings of guilt and imposter syndrome, as if the work doesn't count without manual struggle. The author reflects on... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/i-use-ai-when-i-code-and-sometimes-it-makes-me-feel-like-i-m-cheating--lq7bxw0bv og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/Lq7bXW0bV.png og:image:alt: I use AI when I code. And sometimes it makes me feel like I’m cheating. og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # I use AI when I code. And sometimes it makes me feel like I’m cheating. **[DEV](https://daily.dev/sources/devto)** · 3 min read · 145 upvotes · 24 comments ## Summary Using AI coding assistants can trigger feelings of guilt and imposter syndrome, as if the work doesn't count without manual struggle. The author reflects on how AI removes friction between ideas and implementation, arguing that the real value lies in creativity, decision-making, and what gets built—not the keystrokes. The piece validates developers who feel conflicted about AI assistance, reframing it as a tool that amplifies existing capabilities rather than diminishing them. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Community discussion Top comments from developers on daily.dev. **@ghost** · 16 upvotes > I think it is because the job is evolving, the task of actually typing the code becomes redundant and the task of designing the code and managing the AI becomes the new focus **@akkitto** · 8 upvotes > Programming was never about typing. It was always about thinking. If you use an AI, to create a functioning, good product, you could've made yourself, then you did the work, not the AI. **@byteoutlaw** · 7 upvotes > Keep grinding! It is cheating yourself not to use it! > > Never forgetting my copy paste days on SO! Not cheating either... :) **@guillaumegomez** · 6 upvotes > yup that's a little bit my feeling too **@grantlinville** · 5 upvotes > The productivity gains that come from proper use of coding agents are real. As long as you own the code and understand it, there's no compelling reason not to use these incredible tools. Naysayers either have no idea what they are doing with these tools, or are working in advanced domains that require expertise beyond normal dev work. ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [God Damn AI is making me dumb](https://daily.dev/posts/god-damn-ai-is-making-me-dumb-h3krp9yba) · Hacker News · 3 upvotes · 2 comments --- Tags: [#ai](https://daily.dev/tags/ai), [#webdev](https://daily.dev/tags/webdev), [#career](https://daily.dev/tags/career), [#productivity](https://daily.dev/tags/productivity) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/i-use-ai-when-i-code-and-sometimes-it-makes-me-feel-like-i-m-cheating--lq7bxw0bv) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"I use AI when I code. 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If you use an AI, to create a functioning, good product, you could’ve made yourself, then you did the work, not the AI.","datePublished":"2025-11-13T02:42:12.025Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/Lq7bXW0bV#c-JQkiEilOV","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Daniel","url":"https://daily.dev/akkitto","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--FtwJqX4c--/f_auto/v1754900041/avatars/avatar_29TCpY2hJR72V3BlxPXzX?_a=BAMClqZW0"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":8}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"Keep grinding! It is cheating yourself not to use it!\nNever forgetting my copy paste days on SO! Not cheating either… :)","datePublished":"2025-11-12T08:25:36.687Z","dateModified":"2025-11-13T07:30:40.777Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/Lq7bXW0bV#c-PEnGw6IzY","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Jacob B. Bonde","url":"https://daily.dev/byteoutlaw","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--veTChHK7--/f_auto/v1733220070/avatars/avatar_5cQvIZKr5tDFDotVDjulg"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":7}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"yup that’s a little bit my feeling too","datePublished":"2025-11-12T08:09:37.143Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/Lq7bXW0bV#c-4MBA6JDGL","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Guillaume Gomez","url":"https://daily.dev/guillaumegomez","image":"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a/ACg8ocInPwVtP7mdux0s5_VsxC4tkUUBtqYzhLqT3zNs8Jo-xUIK=s96-c"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":6}},{"@type":"Comment","text":"The productivity gains that come from proper use of coding agents are real. As long as you own the code and understand it, there’s no compelling reason not to use these incredible tools. Naysayers either have no idea what they are doing with these tools, or are working in advanced domains that require expertise beyond normal dev work.","datePublished":"2025-11-12T15:54:15.489Z","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/Lq7bXW0bV#c-7aIBRNs2x","author":{"@type":"Person","name":"Grant Linville","url":"https://daily.dev/grantlinville","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--l03YTDj7--/f_auto/v1758699502/avatars/avatar_X0hnmImZbiMvExk0KElIj?_a=BAMAK+ZW0"},"interactionStatistic":{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":5}}]} ```