Searched for proof AI makes better developers — found the opposite

There is a widespread belief that AI coding assistants like GitHub Copilot or ChatGPT make developers faster and better at their craft. The author of this post tested that belief by examining evidence and personal experience — and came away unconvinced. Instead, they found that when AI handles routine thinking tasks, developers get fewer chances to wrestle with problems on their own, which is exactly how skills are built and deepened.

The post draws an important distinction: producing code quickly is not the same as becoming a more capable developer. Productivity metrics can look good while underlying understanding quietly weakens. This is a relevant caution for anyone building workflows heavily around AI code generation, especially when the goal is long-term skill growth rather than short-term output.