Off AutopilotAgentic Hype vs Reality
Coding agents are a big shift in how software gets built, but the discourse around them is unbearable. Most of it is either hype / doom scenarios, ragebait or marketing (mostly ai generated). This leads to very bad decision-making, like pushing token quotas, tokenmaxxing, etc. This attitude destroys codebases and turns people into reverse centaurs - a squishy meat appendages for an uncaring machine.
Original drawing by Zachary Kanin
Human in Control
AI is just a tool. It’s not a sacred technology. Like every tool, it will be shaped by people who use it for real work, not by "this model changes everything" hype crowd. Social media makes it look like everyone else has already figured it out. This is not true. Agentic coding is very young and the way forward is to slow down and to give ourselves room to learn what actually works in the real world.
The School of Athens, Raphael, c.1509–11
Off Autopilot
The purpose of this newsletter is to surface this type of practical, level-headed content. It’s a place for devs who use coding agents but are tired of the hype and drama around them.
Each week, you’ll get a list of handpicked, high-signal articles about real agentic coding. Slop-free.
