A 5-step prompt sequence to audit AI-written code and catch confident errors
Ok_Negotiation_2587 · reddit · 2026-08-30
The author shares a 5-step prompt sequence designed to audit AI-generated code, addressing the issue where models confidently defend incorrect logic.
The 5 Steps:
- Explain Backwards: Ask the model to explain the code, its assumptions, and unhandled cases to someone who didn't write the prompt.
- Adversarial Review: Instruct the model to act as a reviewer convinced there is a bug, listing all potential failure paths (bad inputs, concurrency, etc.).
- Minimal Tests: Write minimal tests for the top three risks to verify if they are exploitable.
- Precise Fixes: Fix only the failures found by the tests. Show diffs and link changes to specific tests. Explicitly forbid refactoring.
- PR Description: Generate a pull request description detailing changes, assumptions, and what still needs human checking.
The author highlights that Step 1 (revealing assumptions) and Step 4 (preventing scope creep) are crucial for catching hidden logic errors without introducing new variables.
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