There’s a new buzzword drifting out of Silicon Valley — “vibe coding” — and depending on who you ask, it’s either a revolution in how we build software, or just another overhyped slogan masking hard truths.
The idea is seductive: what if you could build an entire website or app just by chatting with an AI in plain English? No need to know what HTML, CSS, or an API even is. You just “see stuff, say stuff, run stuff, copy-paste stuff,” and things… kind of work. That’s how Andrej Karpathy, OpenAI cofounder and ex-Tesla AI lead, described the experience earlier this year in a now-viral post.
But does the hype hold up? Can a total beginner, with no coding knowledge, really build something functional just by “vibing” with ChatGPT or Claude?
Where It’s Real: The Power of Generative Coding Tools
Thanks to models like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and tools like Replit, Cursor, and Windsurf, the barrier to entry for writing software has absolutely come down. These models can generate complete applications line-by-line, explain what code does, debug errors, and even guide a beginner through simple projects — all through plain language prompts.
Columnist Kevin Roose of the New York Times recently showed it’s possible to spin up working web apps with nothing more than an idea and a little persistence. AI does the heavy lifting; you just talk to it.
And it’s not just hype from journalists. Developers are changing the way they work, too. Many now treat AI like a coding partner — speeding up boilerplate tasks, prototyping faster, and brainstorming features without having to write everything from scratch.
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Where It Breaks Down: The Reality Check for Non-Coders
But here’s the thing: knowing what you want isn’t the same as knowing how to get there — even when you have a very helpful AI assistant.
AI can generate code, but it’s not always correct. And if you don’t know how to evaluate or fix it, you’re stuck. As Nikola Banovic, a professor of computer science at the University of Michigan, points out, “People without programming experience often struggle with these models because they don’t know how to judge the output.”
It’s the classic garbage-in, garbage-out problem. If your prompt is vague, you’ll get vague — or broken — code. And even if the code runs, it may not do what you intended. That’s why Claude Rubinson, a sociology professor, found that despite ChatGPT writing a decent chunk of his app, he still had to understand the code well enough to guide the AI and debug when things went wrong.
In other words: yes, AI can code for you — but only if you know how to talk to it properly, and that’s its own kind of technical skill.
What “Vibe Coding” Gets Right — and What It Doesn’t
So is vibe coding real? In a sense, yes. The process of building software is changing, and conversational interfaces are becoming viable tools even for casual tinkerers. You don’t need to be a full-stack engineer to build a landing page or a simple app.
But is it truly effortless? No. If you’re a total novice, you’ll still run into hard walls — file paths, deployment errors, dependency hell, runtime environments, weird syntax bugs. And AI can’t save you from all of that unless you know how to steer it.
There’s also a broader concern. As more coding becomes automated, entry-level developer roles may shrink, and the value shifts toward those who can wield AI effectively — who understand both the logic of programming and the language of prompting.
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Bottom Line: Vibe Coding Isn’t Magic — It’s Just a New Interface
The dream of software built entirely through conversation is getting closer, but it’s not plug-and-play for everyone — at least, not yet. For now, AI makes coding more accessible, but it doesn’t eliminate the need for critical thinking, technical intuition, and a bit of trial and error.
So can a complete novice build a site with ChatGPT? Sure — if they’re curious, persistent, and okay with getting their hands dirty. But if you’re expecting magic from pure vibes, don’t be surprised when your app refuses to run and your AI just shrugs.