LLM coding assistants didn't create a split between craft-lovers and make-it-go developers. They revealed one that was always there.
For craft-lovers, what's being bypassed isn't the output but the act itself. Marx called this separation from the act of production. But the alienation isn't coming from the LLM. It's coming from a market that penalizes whoever produces output more slowly.
@hongminhee so, I guess this is true, but maybe also the craft changes?
I am old enough to remember when it was common to embed blocks of assembly language in your C code to optimize particular functions or loops. As high level languages grew, that familiarity with hardware architecture has mostly disappeared, but we've developed other skills instead.
When I read @jesse or @simon 's posts about exploring collaboration with LLMs, I see curiosity, creativity and joy in the craft.
@evan Totally agree, and I think that's actually the point the essay is trying to make. The split isn't “LLM users vs. craft lovers” but something more like “people with room to choose how they use the tools vs. people who don't have that room.”
@mitchellh is a good example. He's clearly using LLMs as a craftsperson. So am I, I think. But both of us are in situations where we're not being measured against a colleague's output every quarter. The workplace dynamic is what compresses all of that curiosity and exploration into pure throughput.
The craft probably does survive, just not evenly distributed.
@jesse @evan @hongminhee @simon I feel so torn. LLM code tools are fun, and I probably enjoy them as much as anyone. But.
I’m ~10 years into this job, and for most of them, everybody told me that the details matter, that understanding how it worked was important.
Getting better at my job has often been synonymous with learning to pay better attention, learning how to get a handle on complexity, learning how to learn. These things generally feel at odds with use of LLMs, to me.
@jesse @evan @hongminhee @simon Many people I respect now use LLMs, people on this thread included. I use them too, but like the post author, I still get to decide when, and I try to choose carefully where to draw that line. If it’s important, or I’m learning something, I do it myself.
The day my employer tells me I’m not using enough AI, I’m not sure I’ll know what my job is anymore. I used to pride myself on how good I was at training and mentoring junior devs, but nowadays, what juniors? 🫠
洪 民憙 (Hong Minhee) 
Evan Prodromou
Jesse Vincent
Tom Armstrong