The term that is everywhere
If you have been anywhere near the technology press recently, you will have come across the phrase “vibe coding”. It sounds informal because it is meant to. The term describes a way of building software where the developer describes what they want in plain language and an AI tool generates the code in response. The developer guides, corrects, and iterates, but the AI does the typing.
The name was coined by AI researcher Andrej Karpathy in 2025 and caught on quickly, partly because it captures something real: working with modern AI coding tools does feel less like engineering and more like describing a vision and watching it take shape.
How it works in practice
In practice, vibe coding means working with a large language model, either embedded in a code editor or through a dedicated tool, and using natural language prompts to generate, modify, and debug code. Instead of writing a function from scratch, a developer describes what they need and receives working code in response.
The AI does not have to be right first time. Iteration is part of the process. The developer reviews what comes back, points out what needs to change, and works through the problem together with the model. For developers who know what they are doing, this can significantly speed up the routine parts of a project.
Who it actually helps
Vibe coding works well as a productivity tool for experienced developers. It handles repetitive code, suggests patterns, and reduces time spent on tasks that do not require deep thinking. It can also help people with limited coding experience build basic prototypes or internal tools that might otherwise have needed a developer.
But there is an important distinction between access to a tool and the knowledge to use it well.
You can buy bricks from a DIY store. That does not make you a master builder.Mark Grice – FullyCoded
Where vibe coding becomes unreliable is in production. AI-generated code can look correct and still contain security vulnerabilities, performance problems, or structural decisions that cause real issues at scale. Without someone who understands what the code is actually doing, those problems can sit undetected until they matter.
Do you need to worry about it?
For most businesses, vibe coding is not something to engage with directly. It is a tool developers use, and a good development partner will already be using it where it makes sense without any input needed from you.
What matters is having a team you trust to make sensible decisions about how your project gets built. Whether that involves AI tools, traditional approaches, or a mix of both is a craft decision, not something your brief needs to cover.