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What is vibe coding

Also known as: vibecoding, vibe-coding

Definition

Vibe coding is building software by telling an AI what you want, running what it writes and never reading the code. Great for a prototype, risky with customers.

Why it matters

Vibe coding lets anyone turn an idea into a working screen in an afternoon, which is ideal for trying the idea and dangerous for anything customers depend on.

Common mistakes

Putting real customer data or payments into an app nobody has read.

Related terms

Worked exampleIllustration

A table booking page built in an afternoon

The prompt

"A page with a form for name, phone, date and number of people, and a list I can see."

What the owner sees

  • A booking form: name, phone, date, number of people
  • A list of reservations
  • It works on the owner's phone

What nobody read

  • Where the phone numbers are stored
  • Who can open the list
  • Whether the admin page has a login

Steps

  1. The owner describes the page to an AI app builder in one sentence.

  2. It runs, the date picker is broken, and the owner pastes the error back.

  3. Two rounds later it works, in one afternoon, and the owner never read the code. That is vibe coding.

  4. Decision: Before real customers' phone numbers go into it, someone who reads code checks where the data is stored, who can open the list and whether the admin page has a login.

Great for trying the idea, not yet a system you can hand customer data to. Step 4 is what turns it into AI assisted engineering.

How much of the code does anyone read?

Vibe coding: you judge the result, not the code. It fits a prototype or an internal tool.What the owner seesDescribeRun itPaste theerrorLooksrightThe codeNobody read thisCustomer data ormoney⁨Vibe coding⁩⁨AI assisted engineering⁩

Vibe coding: you judge the result, not the code. It fits a prototype or an internal tool.

The owner sees the loop above the line. The code below it is what nobody reads in vibe coding.

Where vibe coding fits

Only you or your teamCustomers use it

No personal data or money

Fits

A prototype, a mock up, a tool for yourself.

Have someone look

A public page with no data: someone who reads code checks what it exposes.

Personal data or money

Check before use

An internal tool with client data: check where it is stored and who can open it.

Read and test the code

Payments or customer data: AI assisted engineering, with review and tests.

Study: in METR's randomized trial (10 July 2025), 16 experienced developers took 19% longer on real tasks with AI tools, while they had expected to be 24% faster.

Two questions decide it: who uses the app, and does it touch personal data or money.

Definition

Vibe coding means asking an AI tool in plain words for an app or a feature, running the result, pasting any error back and repeating, while accepting the code without reading it. Andrej Karpathy, co-founder of OpenAI and former head of AI at Tesla, coined the term in a post on 2 February 2025: "There's a new kind of coding I call 'vibe coding', where you fully give in to the vibes, embrace exponentials, and forget that the code even exists." Collins Dictionary named it Word of the Year 2025 and defined it as "the use of artificial intelligence prompted by natural language to write computer code". The tools come in three kinds: chat assistants, AI code editors and app builders that make an app from a prompt. Vibe coding sits at one end of a wider category, AI assisted development: when a developer reviews, tests and understands every line the AI wrote, it is no longer vibe coding but AI assisted engineering.

Why it matters

It fits throwaway prototypes, internal tools, a landing page mockup and learning. It does not fit payments, personal or health data, logins or any system customers rely on, because nobody has checked what the code does with them. Speed gains are real for prototypes and unproven for experienced work on mature code: in METR's randomized trial, published on 10 July 2025, 16 experienced open source developers took 19% longer on 246 real tasks when they were allowed AI tools, although they had expected a 24% speed up and still believed afterwards that they had been 20% faster. An app nobody has read is also technical debt from day one, because a developer asked to take it over often has to read it from scratch.

Directly related: Technical Debt, Authentication, Generative AI.

Improvement tips

  • Use vibe coding for prototypes, internal tools and mockups, and move to reviewed, tested code the moment the app stores real customer data or takes payments.
  • Before launch, have someone who reads code check where the data is stored, who can reach it and whether every admin page needs a login.
  • Ask for one thing at a time, one screen or one feature, so you can see what changed.
  • Save working versions in Git, so a bad AI change can be undone.

Common mistakes

  • Assuming AI-written code is secure by default and skipping login and input checks.
  • Asking for a whole system in one prompt, which produces large changes nobody can follow.
  • Handing a vibe coded app to a developer and expecting a small job, when it often has to be read from scratch.

Related terms

TechnologyIntermediate

Technical Debt

Technical debt is the future work created by choosing a quick code solution today over the right one. Unpaid, the interest builds and development slows.

TechnologyIntermediate

Authentication

Authentication is the check that a user is who they claim to be, using something they know, something they have or something they are.

AI and DataBeginner

Generative AI

Generative AI is AI that creates new text, images, audio or code from a request. What it writes is a likely draft built from patterns, not a checked fact.

AI and DataBeginner

Prompt

A prompt is the instruction you give an AI tool: the question, the task, the context and the format you want. A clearer prompt gets a more useful answer.

ProductIntermediate

Prototype

A prototype is a cheap, early stand in for a product or service, built to show people and learn what to fix before paying to build the real thing.

Quick check

What defines vibe coding?

Choose an answer

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to understand vibe coding before I start my business?
You do not need to code, but you should know what it is: building software by describing it to an AI and running the result without reading the code. It lets you test an idea cheaply, and it tells you what to ask before you trust an app built that way.
When does vibe coding first become relevant for a new business?
When you want a quick prototype, a landing page mockup or an internal tool to show customers or partners. It is a fast way to test whether the idea works before paying for a full build.
What does it cost to start vibe coding?
The tools run on subscriptions, and heavy use is often billed by usage, so the cost moves with how much you build. The larger cost comes later, if the prototype has to be reviewed or rebuilt before real customers use it.
Should I build my whole product with vibe coding?
Build the first prototype that way if it helps you test the idea. The trigger to move on comes earlier than growth: the moment the app stores real customer data or takes payments, a developer has to review, test and understand the code.
Why does vibe coding matter for a business already running?
Your team can build internal tools, one-off scripts and mockups quickly without waiting for the development queue. Keep those tools away from customer data unless someone has reviewed them.
What goes wrong when a business relies on code nobody has read?
Hidden security holes, data stored in the wrong place, logic that breaks under load, and an app no developer can take over without reading it from scratch. The tool does not know your business's security context, so it cannot protect it for you.
How do I use vibe coding in my business safely?
Draw a line: prototypes and internal tools on one side, anything with customer data, money or logins on the other. The first side can be vibe coded. The second needs a human review, tests and a staging check before it goes live.
How do I check the quality of AI-written code in our app?
Require a human review for every change that touches customer data, run automated tests and security scans, and keep the history in Git. Ask the developer to explain, in plain words, where the data goes.
What does vibe coding actually mean in plain words?
You tell an AI in everyday language what you want, it writes the code, you run it and fix what breaks by asking again. You judge the result by whether it works, not by reading the code.
Is vibe coding risky or complicated for beginners?
It is easy to start, and that is the risk. A beginner can build something that works on screen and still leaks data. Use it to learn and to test ideas, and do not run customer data on an app nobody has read.
Do I need to be a programmer to vibe code?
No, the tools accept plain language. Knowing the basics of how websites, logins and databases work helps you ask better and notice when something is wrong.
Will vibe coding replace professional developers?
Today it does not. It changes their work: developers use AI to write faster, and they are still needed to design systems, secure them and fix what the AI cannot. In the METR trial, experienced developers were slower with AI on mature code, so the gain depends on the job.

Sources: Andrej Karpathy, post on X, 2 February 2025 (x.com/karpathy/status/1886192184808149383), Collins Dictionary, Word of the Year 2025, announced 6 November 2025, METR, Measuring the Impact of Early-2025 AI on Experienced Open-Source Developer Productivity, 10 July 2025 (metr.org)

Last reviewed: 2026-09-23

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