AI Tools in Web Development — How I Actually Use Them

A lot of developers see AI as the enemy. “It’s going to replace us.” Maybe. But not in the way most people think.

AI won’t replace developers who understand systems, make architectural decisions, and solve real business problems. It will replace developers who write boilerplate all day and never think beyond the ticket. The difference isn’t seniority. It’s mindset.

How I Use It Day to Day

I use Cursor as my main editor and Claude for planning, architecture, and thinking through problems. Not as shortcuts — as tools that let me focus on the hard parts.

When I’m starting a new feature, I’ll describe the problem to Claude first. Not to get the code, but to think through the architecture. What’s the right approach? What are the edge cases? What will this look like in six months when something needs to change? That conversation alone saves hours.

Cursor handles the implementation speed. Boilerplate, repetitive patterns, scaffolding — things that used to take twenty minutes now take two. That’s not laziness. That’s leverage.

The Part Nobody Talks About

You still have to review everything. Every single line.

AI makes confident mistakes. It will suggest something that looks completely reasonable and is subtly wrong for your specific context. If you don’t understand what the code is doing, you won’t catch it. And you’ll ship a bug that took thirty seconds to generate and three hours to debug.

The review step isn’t optional. It’s where your actual skill shows.

The Real Question

The developers who will struggle aren’t the ones AI replaces. They’re the ones who refused to adapt — or worse, the ones who adopted AI without developing the judgment to use it well.

Use the tools. Review the output. Keep thinking.