AI as a Thought Partner

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If you’ve wondered how much AI is really helping engineers - or feared it might replace them - this episode is for you.

In this conversation, Marc and Ben sit down with Nick Meehan, a senior engineer and longtime collaborator, to explore how AI coding tools like Cursor, Claude, and Codex are reshaping day-to-day engineering work. Nick shares how his process evolved from copy-pasting into ChatGPT to using AI as a debugging partner, thought collaborator, and junior developer moving at superhuman speed.

They cover the productivity gains, the pitfalls of vibe coding entire products, the new skills engineers need (critical thinking, architecture, team coordination), and what might never be replaced by AI. Nick also reflects on job security, how satisfaction in engineering is shifting, and where he sees the field heading over the next five years.

Whether you’re an engineer experimenting with coding agents, a product leader trying to understand their impact, or simply curious about how AI is changing the craft of engineering, you’ll walk away with an insider’s perspective on what’s actually happening on the ground.

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✨ Special Surprise…

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In this episode, we covered the following topics:

* (03:40) Nick’s journey from copy-pasting into ChatGPT to discovering Cursor and pushing his team at Ontra to adopt it.

* (06:01) Defining pseudocoding vs. vibe coding—and where AI coding agents like Cursor, Claude, and Codex help or hurt.

* (11:40) The “magic moment” when AI solved frontend toil—and why backend work still demands human judgment.

* (15:31) Using AI as a thought partner and debugger: solving architecture problems and debugging in minutes instead of days.

* (20:00) Nick’s current workflow: step-by-step collaboration with AI, micromanaging it like a superfast intern.

* (30:19) Job security, critical thinking, and why learning to use AI is now a must-have engineering skill.

* (40:43) The enduring value of critical thinking, team coordination, and problem-solving that AI can’t replace.

* (58:35) Predictions: vibe-coded security disasters, a pendulum swing back to balance, and the rise of “cracked engineers.”

* And more!

Links:

* Nick Meehan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickmeehan/

* Nick’s zoom marketplace app: https://nextmeet.ing/

* Marc: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbaselga/

* Ben: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benerez/

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* Supra has teamed up with Maven to bring you something special – courses that our own community members have personally curated. And because you're part of the Supra family, you get $100 off any of these handpicked selections with code SUPRAxMAVEN.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit suprainsider.substack.com