Learn what to expect, what the rules are, etc.
M. Scott Ford Co-Founder and Chief Code Whisperer, Corgibytes
M. Scott Ford is the Co-Founder and Chief Code Whisperer at Corgibytes, a software consultancy dedicated to modernizing existing codebases. Scott, who has been called the “Bob Vila of the internet”, is a polyglot developer who, at last count, is fluent in over twenty programming languages. Scott’s love of software restoration and remodeling began in college where he and his team were responsible for retrofiting the testing tools for the X-31 jet fighter. Since then, Scott has maintained a test-focused approach to his work and found the most joy in projects where an existing codebase needed to be improved. Scott is also a guest lecturer on Continuous Delivery practices at Harvard University.
As AI accelerates the pace of coding, organizations will have a hard time keeping up; acceleration isn't useful if it's driving our projects straight into a brick wall of technical debt. This presentation explores the consequences of AI-assisted coding, weighing its potential to improve productivity against the risks of deteriorating code quality.
Adam delivers a fact-based examination of the short and long-term implications of using AI assistants in software development. Drawing from extensive research analyzing over 100,000 AI-driven refactorings in real-world codebases, we scrutinize the claims made by contemporary AI tools, demonstrating that increased coding speed does not necessarily equate to true productivity. Additionally, we also look at the correctness of AI generated code, a concern for many organizations today due to the error-prone nature of current AI tools.
Finally, the talk offers strategies for succeeding with AI-assisted coding. This includes introducing a set of automated guardrails that act as feedback loops, ensuring your codebase remains maintainable even after adopting AI-assisted coding.
Adam Tornhill Founder & CTO, CodeScene
Adam Tornhill is a programmer who combines degrees in engineering and psychology. He’s the founder of CodeScene where he designs tools for code analysis. Adam is also a software researcher and author of multiple technical books, including the best selling Your Code as a Crime Scene. Adam’s other interests include music, retro computing, and martial arts.