Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats 944: Is Coinbase Really Writing Half Their Code With AI?
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Oct 8, 2025 Kyle Cesmat, a lead on developer experience at Coinbase, talks about the innovative use of AI in software development. He reveals how nearly half of Coinbase's code is generated by AI while maintaining a strong focus on quality and security. The conversation covers tools like Cursor and Claude Code, unique code review processes, and how AI helps streamline workflows from ticket creation to production. Kyle emphasizes that AI is a productivity booster for developers, not a replacement, reshaping the landscape of code writing.
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AI Code Is A Suggestion, Not An Autonomous Push
- Coinbase treats AI-generated code as suggestions that require developer responsibility and attribution.
- Strong quality guardrails and review remain mandatory before shipping to customers.
Integrate AI Into Existing Ticket-To-PR Workflows
- Use AI tools at multiple points: PMs can draft tickets, agents can create branches, then engineers do review and ship.
- Keep the traditional review, testing, and approver steps intact for any AI-produced work.
Prototype With MCPs, Harden With Native APIs
- Provide standard primitives (MCPs, model proxies) but allow teams to prototype with custom agents.
- Move successful prototypes from MCPs to tighter API integrations when they need production-grade control.