'Got Humbled': Vibe Coder Caught Using AI By Boss Gets Schooled
As per the now-viral post, the user said they were using Cursor/GPT to ship the product quickly whilst working at two companies.
"I'm currently interning at 2 companies SRE at one, and SDE at a very early-stage startup (like 20 employees). At the startup, it's just me and the CTO in tech. They're funded ($5M), but super early," wrote the user in the r/developersIndia subreddit.
While all was going well, the CTO of one of the companies started asking them in-depth questions about their code and this is where things turned pear-shaped.
"The CTO started asking deep dive questions about the code. Stuff like, "Why did you structure it this way?" or "Explain what this function does internally." The code was mostly AI-generated, and I honestly couldn't explain parts of it properly."
"He straight up told me: "I don't mind if you use AI, but you have to know what your code is doing." Then he started explaining my code to me. Bruh. I was cooked."
The OP said the entire experience was 'super humbling' as he had been vibe coding without really understanding the "deeper stuff like architecture, modularisation, and writing clean, production-level code".
'How did you even...'
As the post went viral, garnering hundreds of upvotes, social media users agreed with the CTO's remarks, while others questioned how the OP had landed the internship without knowing what the code meant.
"I am working as QA, and you can't replace experience. You will have to learn over time. But asking questions is also a good approach. Why and how," said one user while another added: "Get to know your application's core system design. Decide your architecture which can scale in production later. Now use this as a knowledge base in Cursor/ChatGPT."
A third commented: "If you can't say what that code is doing by looking at it, then how did you even get 2 internships?"
A fourth said: "Best way to learn how to write clean code is reading open source project code. Hands down its the best way to learn plus have a curious mind."
Notably, the term vibe coding has been popularised by Andrej Karpathy, who has worked with companies like Tesla and OpenAI.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Are AI advisors wise enough to manage your entire money journey, take your biggest investment decisions?
The Indian context Invest 60% in mutual funds and 40% in individual stocks. She invested in Zomato, Nykaa, and Paytm on its recommendation and suffered losses. Now uses AI tools only for basic research and always cross-verifies insights with a financial planner. Answer is not black and white Putting AI to the test Human touch matters Chatbots can go wrong Regularly uses AI chatbots to support her Provides detailed prompts and her own data rather than relying on AI to source information. Uses Ai mainly for analysing stocks and fundamentals, optimising strategies for slippages and market corrections. How does a Chatbot compare to a financial adviser? How experts use AI How industry is using AI Should you use it? Quiz: Are you ready to trust AI with your money? I know my monthly income and expenses in detail. I have an emergency fund that covers at least 6 months of expenses. I know my current asset allocation (equity, debt, gold, etc.). I understand the basics of SIPs, mutual funds, stocks, and insurance. I can explain my risk appetite (conservative, balanced, aggressive). I know how taxation works on different types of investments. I have defined short., medium., and financial goals. I know the approximate amount and timeline for each goal. I track my progress towards these goals at least once a year. I know how to frame detailed, specific prompts to get useful AI outputs. I always verify AI's suggestions with reliable sources before acting. I understand that free AI tools may not have market data. 'I had a terrible day. How do I make myself feel better?'That's the kind of question many Gen Zs are throwing at chatbots these days—using them as a stand-in for therapy, simply because therapy costs too much. From relationship rants to work woes, artificial intelligence is quietly becoming their go-to sounding it's not just for venting. Whether it's fixing an awkward email, sorting out daily tasks, or helping with big life decisions, AI is creeping into every corner of our lives. And money matters are no exception. Gen Z and millennials are also using AI to manage their finances.A 2024 Experian study found that 67% of Gen Z and 62% of millennials in the US turn to AI for personal finance advice. From saving and budgeting (60%) to investment planning (48%) and even improving credit scores (48%), generative AI (genAI) tools like ChatGPT are quietly becoming part of their financial home, the trend isn't too far behind. While a 2025 CFA Institute report states that 91% of Indians who have graduated in the last three years still place the most trust in human advisers, 83% also indicate that they trust AI assistants, such as ChatGPT, to guide them with their shift is inevitable. AI is affordable, accessible, and evolving fast. Deloitte Insights predicts that by 2027, GenAI tools will become the primary source of financial advice for retail investors, with usage projected to hit 80% by 2028The question is: should you use AI for money matters just because others do? Can you rely on a chatbot to understand your financial needs and give the right advice? Or does the good old human financial planner remain your best bet to steer your money in the right direction?New DelhiHow can I double my investment in five years, in is quick and sharp when it comes to analysing data, portfolios, and anything numbers-driven. But there's one thing it can't replicate—emotional intelligence. 'Clients value advisers who take the time to walk them through their goals and portfolio reviews. This kind of personalised, timeintensive work matters to them,' says Ravi Kumar T V, Co-founder, Gaining Ground Investment they also appreciate, he adds, is help in understanding the behavioural side of investing. 'Advisers play a key role during volatile phases by being emotionally present. When retail investors see a market dip, they often panic and pull out. That's where AI falls short. It can't hold their hand through the fear,' says Tivesh Shah, Founder, Tru-Worth Finsultants. Human advisers also take the time to understand the entire picture before recommending any action, something GenAI isn't yet equipped to understand this with the help of an example. We pitched a financial planner, Shilpa Bhaskar Gole, founder of NerdyBird Financial Wellness, against different AI chatbots – Perplexity, ChatGPT, and Grok AI. We presented a reader's query on his investments to the different AIs and then also to Bhasker of them were given any extra inputs. There was a vast difference between the responses from each AI. Among the three, ChatGPT gave the most balanced response. It provided flexibility in terms of SIP range and step-up, while also emphasising the importance of debt allocation. It also highlighted the need for periodic portfolio reviews and adjustments to account for market changes, inflation, and life the other hand, Grok commented on the surplus available, without understanding the reader's expenses. It also overlooked the need to set aside an emergency fund. Elsewhere, Perplexity overlooked the importance of debt allocation as the retirement goal gets closer, which is crucial for ensuring stability and capital preservation needed for the initial phase of retirement. Given these gaps, we decided to exclude the responses from Grok and Perplexity, keeping only ChatGPT's output for Gole offered advice that reflected a more profound understanding, arguably superior to ChatGPT's, factoring in the reader's situation and projecting returns more biggest difference? When given the same query, Gole asked follow-up questions to better understand the case, AI chatbots didn't. But for the sake of this exercise, we didn't offer her any extra details either. And that's where the gap lies. The advice may be reliable, but does your chatbot know enough about you to suggest the right product or strategy?Free versions also have limited access to real-time data. ChatGPT, in particular, may not always reflect recent developments. Others might, but the number of free queries is capped, after which you hit a paywall. That's a slippery slope, one that could lead to decisions that don't align with your Delhi-based Mitushi Bhatt, for instance. A private school teacher with limited investing knowledge, Bhatt isn't fond of discussing money matters, so ChatGPT felt like a safe space. In 2024, she had asked a simple question: 'How can I double my savings in five years?'At the time, the bot had recommended allocating 60% to equity mutual funds and 40% to individual stocks. It suggested One 97 Communications (Paytm), Eternal (Zomato), and FSN E-Commerce Ventures (Nykaa), citing their post-listing growth and role in India's booming digital sounded promising at first. But by year-end, Paytm had nosedived after regulatory action against its payments bank. Zomato rallied briefly but fell after poor quarterly results. 'I lost about Rs.40,000 back then,' Bhatt went wrong? Bhatt didn't realise that open-ended questions often lead to generic answers, ones that may sound logical but don't account for individual trader,GurugramNow, she uses AI tools just for basic research and always consults an adviser before taking action. 'I've learned the hard way that no chatbot can replace the value of someone who understands my situation,' she says.'Clients value advisers who take the time to walk them through their goals and portfolio reviews.'CO-FOUNDER, GAINING GROUND INVESTMENT SERVICESThat's not to say AI chatbots aren't helpful—they are, but mainly for those who already have some financial literacy. 'The output is only as good as the data fed into the prompt,' says Shah. Without a straightforward question, you're unlikely to get a helpful answer.I'm 51 years old with a net monthly income of Rs.2.25 lakh and an EMI of Rs.22,000. My son is in Class 9, and my daughter has completed her graduation and is preparing for an MBA. I've set aside Rs.35 lakh in mutual fund SIPs for their education. I have a life cover of Rs.1.5 crore and a health insurance plan of Rs.25 lakh. I want to build a retirement corpus of Rs.3 crore over the next 10 years. What's the best way to achieve this?To build a Rs.3 crore retirement corpus in 10 years, invest Rs.1.5-1.6 lakh monthly in equity mutual funds, targeting 10-11% returns. With a Rs.2.25 lakh salary and Rs.22,000 EMI, you can allocate this comfortably. Use diversified or index funds and raise investments by 5-10% annually. Keep 10-15% in debt funds for stability and an emergency corpus covering 6-9 months in liquid funds. With a Rs.35 lakh education fund, adequate insurance, and health cover already in place, you can now focus fully on retirement. Review and rebalance annually to stay on build a Rs.3 crore retirement corpus in 10 years, start an SIP of Rs.1.2-1.3 lakh per month in equity mutual funds, targeting 12% annual returns. Increase contributions by 5-10% yearly with salary growth. Nearing retirement, shift one-third to debt funds for stability while keeping the rest compounding in equity. Review your portfolio regularly for inflation, returns, and life changes, and secure protection via an emergency fund, health and life insurance. For a tailored strategy, consult a Sebi-registered investment response beats ChatGPT with a realistic 12% return, tailored Rs.1.2–1.3 lakh SIP, and phased debt shift, offering personalised review over generic Malhotra, a trader based in Gurugram, has been using AI chatbots for both trading and long-term investing. 'AI has been beneficial,' she says, but only because she knows exactly what to ask. 'I don't rely on it to collect data. I feed it my thought process and detailed prompts. That's when it works best.' According to her, tasks that took 6-8 months can now be done in 10-15 days. AI helps her with analysis, strategy optimisation for slippages, market correction calculations, and fundamental stock analysis. But forecasting and anticipating market behaviour is still on can't replace humans, she says, but it can complement them. A blend of expert insight and AI support works far better than relying on AI alone. Humans have certain limitations when it comes to computation, like having a bias towards a specific asset these limitations, the finance industry is already adopting AI to boost efficiency. "GenAI is transforming financial planning and wealth management by streamlining research, surfacing insights, portfolio management, compliance and risk management and enhancing decision-making. Microsoft Copilot is helping users track expenses, summarise financial statements, and explore budgeting scenarios," says Sonali Kulkarni, Country Head, BFSI, Microsoft India and South advisers, too, are using AI to offer more customised solutions. Earlier,advisers used to give recommendations based on what they knew. Now, they are able to cross-check their recommendations,h says Sadique Neelgund, Founder & CEO, Network FP. Uploading a client's financial history into tools like ChatGPT or Perplexity gives advisers a "360-degree approach to that client that took combing through spreadsheets or researching now done in a fraction of the time. AI tools also help manage client communication better, while making the research quicker and Management Companies (AMCs) and fund managers, on the other hand, are relying less on existing AIs and focusing on building customised bots for their operations. Nishant Pradhan, Chief AI Officer, Mirae Asset Investment Managers, says, 'With large language models and tools like ChatGPT, we can process a lot of unstructured content quickly and extract summaries about companies. We are also able to get new insights like sentiment score, which was difficult to quantify earlier.'The AMC is exploring genAI to identify emerging themes, analyse company revenues within those themes, and enhance the efficiency of thematic research and monitoring. 'Thanks to AI, fund managers can focus more on insights than spending time on routing data collection,' Pradhan Sharma, Fund Manager, Motilal Oswal AMC, says they are incorporating AI similarly, though they rely on different models of existing tools. 'Every model has its strengths. One model is good for rationalisation, another for calculations, another for quickly getting your financial data,' he says. However, he notes that AI is less useful for qualitative research.'The quantitative part of our work is where AI is helping us a lot. But when it comes to the qualitative, it is not that straightforward,' he adds. According to him, it still struggles with aspects such as assessing management quality or softer factors that are important in fundamental was among the first trading platforms to adopt AI, though it's still early days. Users can now install a Model Context Protocol (MCP) enabling them to interact with their trading accounts via simple queries instead of using the traditional interface. For instance, you can pull your account data, run various types of analysis, do a cash flow breakdown, figure out your net worth, or identify action points. However, Bhuvanesh R, VP, Business Analysis, Zerodha, cautions that it's not meant for advisory. 'Advice is one outcome of this. It is not an advisory tool or advisory product. If you ask for advice, it will give it, but it may or may not be reliable,' he says. Adoption is still too limited to assess its actual value depends. 'You need to have a basic grasp of financial concepts to ask the right questions. If you expect to outsource all your finances to AI, it may not work,' adds Bhuvanesh from Zerodha. If you are a beginner with no knowledge, at best you can take help to manage your household budget or behavioural aspects of your decision. The consensus among experts is clear: AI works best as an assistant, not a substitute. Tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, or Grok can simplify tasks such as tracking expenses, analysing cash flows, pulling account performance, screening stocks, or summarising financial reports in seconds. AI is far superior to humans in processing vast amounts of data and quickly sourcing insights. You must first be clear about where you stand financially—your income, assets, liabilities, and goals, before turning to AI; otherwise, the advice can be short, retail investors can lean on AI for research, comparisons, and routine analysis, but the final call should remain firmly in human hands. AI can crunch numbers faster than any human, but it can't understand your fears, dreams, or unique goals. For now, the most astute investors are using AI as a tool, rather than a replacement for trusted financial one or more of the 12 points below that apply to you9-12 ticks You can use AI effectively as an assistant, with some human advice when needed.5-8 ticks Use AI only for simple tasks (like budgeting or tracking). Rely on a planner for investments.0-4 ticks Stick with a human adviser until you build more financial literacy.
NDTV
9 hours ago
- NDTV
Godfather Of AI Warns Technology Could Invent Its Own Language: 'It Gets Scary...'
Geoffrey Hinton, regarded by many as the 'godfather of artificial intelligence' (AI), has warned that the technology could get out of hand if chatbots manage to develop their language. Currently, AI does its thinking in English, allowing developers to track what the technology is thinking, but there could come a point where humans might not understand what AI is planning to do, as per Mr Hinton. "Now it gets more scary if they develop their own internal languages for talking to each other," he said on an episode of the "One Decision" podcast that aired last month. "I wouldn't be surprised if they developed their own language for thinking, and we have no idea what they're thinking." Mr Hinton added that AI has already demonstrated that it can think terrible thoughts, and it is not unthinkable that the machines could eventually think in ways that humans cannot track or interpret. Warning about AI Mr Hinton laid the foundations for machine learning that is powering today's AI-based products and applications. However, the Nobel laureate grew wary of AI's future development and cut ties with his employer, Google, in order to speak more freely on the issue. "It will be comparable with the industrial revolution. But instead of exceeding people in physical strength, it's going to exceed people in intellectual ability. We have no experience of what it's like to have things smarter than us," said Mr Hinton at the time. "I am worried that the overall consequence of this might be systems more intelligent than us that eventually take control." Mr Hinton has been a big advocate of government regulation for the technology, especially given the unprecedented pace of development. His warning also comes in the backdrop of repeated instances of AI chatbots hallucinating thoughts. In April, OpenAI's internal tests revealed that its o3 and o4-mini AI models were hallucinating or making things up much more frequently than even the non-reasoning models, such as GPT-4o. The company said it did not have any idea why this was happening. In a technical report, OpenAI said, "more research is needed" to understand why hallucinations are getting worse as it scales up its reasoning models.
Time of India
9 hours ago
- Time of India
Electric cars: Still needing a push?
People have been dreaming about electric cars for a long time. In fact, the first electric car, called the Electrobat, was already driving around in 1894! And in 1909, an electric car even beat a petrol (gasoline) car in a traffic race. So why aren't electric cars everywhere by now? Right now, only about 25 out of every 100 cars sold in the world are electric. That may sound like a lot, but most of these cars are made and bought in just one country — China. That means in the rest of the world, most people still use petrol or diesel cars, called ICE cars (short for internal combustion engine). Even Tesla, the most famous electric car company, is struggling. It's selling fewer cars in Europe, and it's making less money. One big reason Tesla made so much money before was by selling something called carbon credits — basically, rewards from the government for making clean cars. But those rewards are starting to go away, especially in the US. And soon, people in the US will also lose a big $7,500 discount they got for buying electric cars. China also spent a huge amount of money — around $231 billion — to help its electric car industry grow. Now, Chinese carmakers are building more cars than people want to buy, which is causing problems. This raises a big question: If electric cars are really the future, why do they still need so much help from governments? When Henry Ford built his Model T car in 1908, it cost $850. Within a few years, he made it so efficiently that it cost only $300 — and millions of people bought it. He didn't need any government help to do that. Electric cars are amazing for the planet. But maybe, just maybe, they need to learn how to survive without help — and roll forward on their own four wheels. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.
