lemire's layered model: a slow, hand-reviewed core, fast AI-driven outer layers
lemire · x · 2026-09-05
Computer scientist Daniel Lemire draws a parallel to the late 1960s-70s, when a sudden flood of inexperienced programmers produced mountains of crumbling software — enough to depress Dijkstra. AI-assisted coding is now generating far more code, and whether projects hold up remains to be seen.
He proposes a layered model:
- Core: small, changes slowly and on purpose; you actually read the code and insist on tests — AI assistance allowed, but no vibe coding
- Outer layers: move fast, bugs happen, AI fixes them quickly
- Dependencies must be one-way: outer layers depend on the core, never the reverse
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