What is Vibe coding?

Why it matters

Vibe coding lets one non-engineer turn an idea into a working app in a weekend, which is a real shift in who can build software. The catch is that "it runs" and "it is ready for users" are different claims, and vibe coding optimises for the first. The output looks finished because it passed the demo, while the parts a demo never exercises (authorization, the data model, error paths) are where it tends to be thin.

How it works, briefly

You describe a feature to a tool like Cursor, Claude Code, Lovable, or Bolt, the model writes the code, and you keep or discard it based on whether the result looks right, not on a line-by-line review. Speed comes from not reading everything. That same speed is why problems hide: nobody traced the path that only fails under load or with a second user.

Where teams get it wrong

The common mistake is treating a vibe-coded prototype as a finished product. It is a validated starting point, not a production system. The fix is not to rewrite it in a panic, but to audit it: find the load-bearing risks and harden them in order.

When we reach for it

We use AI heavily ourselves, but a senior engineer reads and signs off on what ships. Vibe coding is an excellent way to find out whether an idea is worth building. It is a poor way to decide it is done.