A few people saw me coding while I was in LA last weekend and asked, "Hey, do you use Cursor or Copilot?" I do not, and I think it's important to share the reason why. I tested Copilot in VS Code for a few months earlier this year. Yes, it feels like magic. But then I noticed a change in my behavior. I'd type up the name of a function I wanted to create... ...and then I'd just wait. I was waiting for the robot to do my thinking for me. I've heard @ThePrimeagen call this the "Copilot Pause" and that was 100% my experience. I remember initially having this defensive thought pattern: "Well, code auto-complete isn't going away, and I'm still getting good at the higher-level architecture! I shall be the conductor of machines, all shall love me and despair" But that wasn't true at all. In reality, I was just unconsciously outsourcing my ability to solve problems in addition to outsourcing knowledge of the syntax. So I uninstalled it (and saved myself the $10/mo in the process). I do use LLMs in the browser, but in a conscious way. I make a point of seeking out official docs, and of trying to interpret error messages myself instead of mindlessly pasting them. I do think these tools are extremely useful. But it also seems that, just as extremely, they entice me to change my habits around problem-solving and mental effort – for the worse. I think it's very important to be careful how much we rely on them.