vibe coding.
Building software by repeatedly prompting an AI and reacting to the result, especially when the person pays little attention to the underlying code.
What does vibe coding mean?
Vibe coding originally describes a prompt-and-feedback style of building software: ask for a change, run the result, and keep adjusting according to whether it seems to work. Its distinctive idea is being guided by outcomes without closely understanding or reviewing the implementation.
People now use the phrase more broadly for AI-assisted programming, but that broad use loses an important distinction. A developer who reads, tests, and takes responsibility for generated code is not necessarily working in the narrower vibe-coding sense. When describing a project, explain how it was built and checked rather than treating the label as a quality guarantee or a criticism by itself.
See how it lands.
Original examples written for this entry, not quotations from the sources.
I vibe-coded a tiny timer by describing each change and trying it in the browser.
Using completion tools does not mean our whole engineering process is vibe coding.
The right word.
The right moment.
Use it to discuss an outcome-led, AI-prompted development workflow. Clarify whether you mean the original narrow sense or the broader casual label.
Do not assume a working demo proves a production system is correct, or that all AI-assisted programming skips understanding and review.
Not quite the same as…
AI-assisted coding
A broader category that includes deliberate review, debugging, and testing. It does not necessarily imply disengagement from the code.
A little backstory.
Andrej Karpathy introduced the expression in a February 2025 post. Wiktionary documents that source and later reporting; the exact workflow implied by the term has since broadened in popular use.
Supported by Wiktionary contributors
Still wondering?
Is all AI-assisted coding vibe coding?
Not in the narrower sense. The distinction is how much the person understands and reviews the implementation.
Does vibe coding mean no coding knowledge?
Not necessarily. It describes an approach, and experienced programmers can also use that approach for experiments.
Sources & checks
Meaning and factual notes are informed by the references below. Examples and usage advice are original editorial writing. A source documents use; it does not measure current popularity.
- vibe coding — English entry ↗Wiktionary contributors · checked 19 Oct 2026Supports: meaning; usage