Does vibe coding count as building software?
Not gonna lie.
A topic like this was outlined on X, and many people were discussing it.
It’s controversial, especially from the perspective of “old-school” programmers who strongly defend the knowledge they gained through long discussions, reading, and trial and error. Now, someone can just come along, write a prompt, quickly get an output, and monetise it.
Personally, I consider software built by someone who truly knows how to program to be more “honest.” I see that person as someone with real skills and valid knowledge. Subjectively, I value software created by them more than something (vibe)coded by me, since I don’t understand code very well.
TL;DR:
I value the vibecoded project from a software engineer more than a project vibecoded by a layman.
What is your perspective on vibe-coding and "honest programming work"?
Replies
AI is just the tool for developing.
Good professionals make good products with good tools. Bad professionals make bad products with good tools ;)
Do you call it woodworking, when it is done with the help of a machine, or only hand made is considered as woodworking ;)
@stoyan_minchev exactly, can't be put better in words.
Meet-Ting
Toone
Is there such a thing as "honest programming" anymore? Depends on the "how", do you understand what it's doing, do you use it as a tool rather than a crutch?
Vibe coding isn't the problem. Shipping something you can't debug, can't maintain, or can't explain, that's the problem. If so, you're just kicking the can of technical debt to whoever takes the project down the line 😄
Here is how I look at it. You have an idea and you build a business around that idea. but that idea needs software so now you have to hire software developers to get the desired project. You don't know these developers, you don't know if they are being honest about their skill set, as is up to the level they proclaim. You are just going by the resume and references (hopefully). You would probably need 3 to 4 developers to get the project done in a timely matter. So as the one with the idea, who doesn't know how to code, which direction would be better? Hire a development team or use AI?
I am going for the AI solution. I know a little about from doing small projects and scripts over the years but I do not have the knowledge to right the stuff I have written in AI. Could I gain the knowledge and writ it? Sure, would have taken me 3 years (best guess) to complete the work that I did in a couple few months with AI.
Is it wrong? Not in my opinion, I wish it was around when I was younger. The creativity it now allows me to do without having to know every detail frees me up to be more productive and creative. It allows me to take on projects for my clients to use AI and Automation to help their business.
I have stated this before you have to zoom out and look at the bigger picture. so when I look at it developed code, I ask, does it meet the functionality I wanted? Does it meet the security standards or better? Is the platform setup secure? is it scalable? is it user friendly? If a client needs to make changes to the developed product, can they make those change easily enough and is the access to make those changes secure?
If I focus on the code, I miss everything else I need to make sure happens to have a deliverable product. Vibe coding itself is also a skill, maybe not as in depth as knowing a coding language, but a skill to make sure it is done correctly. Just knowing how to ask AI to build a website isn't enough.
My $.03
Now that I am thinking about it I am talking more about Agentic Coding than Vibe Coding
What matters is whether you can:
1. Ship something that works
2. Debug it when it breaks
3. Evolve it as needs change
I think it counts as building software, just not the same kind of building 👀
If someone can go from idea to working product and people use it, that’s real. But I also get your point — there’s a big difference between shipping something with AI help and deeply understanding what’s happening underneath.
To me, the real split is less “honest vs dishonest” and more:
can you maintain it?
can you debug it?
can you improve it when things get messy?
Vibe coding is real building. It just doesn’t automatically mean real engineering 😄
Vibe coding gets something right, it lowers the barrier to starting. That matters.
But building software isn’t just generating code. It’s owning edge cases, tradeoffs, and behavior when things break.
From what I’ve seen, the real shift is this: more people can initiate software, but fewer truly control it. That gap will define who actually builds vs who just ships prototypes.
Yes, it counts as building software. The bigger question is whether you can maintain, debug, and improve it once the first version is live.