Although I also use AI for some features on this blog and sometimes chat with some AI agent (whether it’s ChatGPT, Claude, Microsoft Copilot or GitHub Copilot), I have mixed feelings about its mandated use at work (Shopify is just one company doing it).

It can certainly help in situations where you feel blocked, with a lack of ideas how to solve your problem at hands. It can unblock you and show you new directions in which to search for a solution. Furthermore, it can also help you quickly complete boring and monotonous tasks.

But mandating the use of AI and expecting a specific efficiency increase (like a lump-sum improvement of 10%) is a step too much, in my opinion.

When I write code, I need to understand what it’s actually doing. In my head, I try to go through the steps that the program takes. I definitely want to make sure the code has no unintended side effects.

But using AI with too little control (because you either don’t care or there is too much pressure to deliver) will only make code quality worse and software less secure and more buggy.

Not to mention all the negative ecological effects AI has and which are making me rethink my use of AI.