×

Dynamic AI
Co-Creation

A Human-Centered Approach
by Will Luers

Created through the Digtal Pubishing Initiative at The Creative Media and Digital Culture program, with support of the OER Grants at Washington State University Vancouver.

publisher logo

Chapter 8: AI Coding

1. Generative AI Coding


“Wasn’t it odd that the machines needed us humans to learn their maddeningly precise secret languages to get the most out of them? If they’re so smart, shouldn’t they try to understand what we’re saying?”
— Farhad Manjoo
Is Code Generation with AI the New Programmer Tool of Choice? | IBM Technology

In 2025, AI is changing how we write code. Tools like GitHub Copilot X, Amazon CodeWhisperer, and Claude-based coding agents allow developers to describe ideas in plain language and turn them into working code. High-level developers can now manage major projects with small teams—thanks to AI handling prototyping, debugging, and even feature development.

This shift doesn't mean coding jobs disappear—it means they evolve. Junior dev roles may shrink, but new roles emerge: AI reviewers, code prompt engineers, and architectural supervisors who guide the AI's work. AI doesn't replace creativity—it accelerates it, especially when paired with strong human judgment and design thinking.

  • AI-native small teams: Tiny startup teams now build platforms that once required dozens of engineers, with AI filling in for boilerplate code, documentation, and QA.
  • Conversational coding: You describe what you want—“Build a dashboard with user login and data filters”—and the AI generates the frontend, backend, and even test scripts.
  • Autonomous agents: Tools like Claude Code and Copilot Workspace let bots carry out complex tasks end-to-end, including planning, writing, and revising code with minimal input.

Recent studies show that AI tools boost productivity most when used by non-experts or for unfamiliar tasks. Expert programmers sometimes find the AI distracting when doing specialized or already-familiar work. Still, teams using AI finish basic code tasks 30–55% faster, and many employers now prioritize hiring “AI-native” talent.

Large Language Models and the Future of Programming – CS50 Tech Talk

As we move forward, AI won’t eliminate the need for coding—it will redefine what it means to build software. The future belongs to creative collaborators who understand both what code can do and how to guide AI in making it.

2. Development with AI

10 Developer Productivity Boosts from Generative AI | IBM Technology

AI is transforming how developers write, test, and manage code. By automating tasks that once took hours, AI accelerates workflows and opens development to more people. Developers can now focus on high-level design while AI handles the repetitive or complex details.

  • Automated Code Generation: Write plain-English prompts and let AI generate code snippets or entire modules.
  • Bug Detection and Correction: Scan for errors, suggest fixes, and explain problem areas in real time.
  • Code Optimization: Refactor and streamline code for better speed, memory use, or maintainability.
  • Documentation Generation: Auto-create readable documentation based on code and comments.
  • Language Translation: Convert code across languages (e.g., Python to JavaScript) with context awareness.
  • Learning and Tutoring: Personalized AI tutors guide beginners through coding logic and syntax step-by-step.
  • Security Scanning: Identify vulnerabilities and recommend secure coding practices.
  • Automated Testing: Generate unit and integration tests directly from code or descriptions.

These tools don’t replace developers—they amplify what teams can do. But they still require human oversight, especially for interpreting edge cases, setting architectural vision, and ensuring ethical usage.

Top AI Tools for Developers

  • GitHub Copilotgithub.com/features/copilot - Code completions and suggestions in real time inside your favorite IDEs.
  • Tabninetabnine.com - Context-aware code suggestions across many languages and environments.
  • Replit Ghostwriterreplit.com/site/ghostwriter - Generative code support built into Replit's cloud IDE—great for solo or team projects.
  • Kitekite.com -Focused support for Python with fast, smart autocompletions and learning tools.
  • OpenAI Codexopenai.com/blog/openai-codex - The model behind Copilot, trained on billions of lines of code, supporting natural language to code.
  • Amazon CodeWhispereraws.amazon.com/codewhisperer - AI-assisted code for AWS development, including security scanning and cloud service integration.

3. Web Design with AI

Learn to Code using AI - ChatGPT Programming Tutorial (Full Course) | FreeCodeCamp.org

Markup languages like HTML, XML, and Markdown are the foundation of the web—but writing them manually can be slow and repetitive. Designers often have to memorize exact syntax and tags, which takes energy away from creative decision-making. AI tools are helping to change that.

AI-assisted web design automates tedious coding tasks so designers can focus on what really matters: layout, style, accessibility, and user experience. These tools draw on large datasets of websites and templates to offer smart autocompletion, real-time previews, syntax correction, and accessibility tips.

Key benefits of AI-assisted markup tools include:

  • Auto-closing tags – No more missing end-tags or broken structure.
  • Syntax error highlighting – Instantly spot and fix mistakes in your code.
  • Tag and attribute suggestions – Get helpful descriptions and best-practice tips.
  • Live preview rendering – See how your code displays as you write it.
  • Format conversions – Convert between HTML, Markdown, or other markup languages with ease.
  • Accessibility prompts – Ensure your designs follow inclusive design standards.

Designers still benefit from understanding HTML and CSS basics, but AI reduces friction and frees them to make more impactful creative decisions. This shift from rote coding to intelligent design support empowers creators to build faster, smarter, and more beautiful web experiences.

4. Server and Site Maintenance

AI isn't just transforming how websites are built—it’s revolutionizing how they’re maintained and scaled. As web apps grow more complex, ongoing tasks like monitoring, security, performance tuning, and resource management become increasingly critical. AI tools now handle much of this heavy lifting in real time.

Modern AI systems can:

  • Predict server load and scale infrastructure before traffic spikes hit.
  • Detect and respond to anomalies such as hacking attempts, unusual traffic patterns, or system errors.
  • Scan codebases and deployments for security vulnerabilities and compliance issues.
  • Recommend cost-saving measures by analyzing cloud usage and optimizing instance types or storage tiers.

These tools integrate with DevOps and SRE pipelines, enabling teams to automate tasks that once required manual vigilance.

Key AI Ops and DevSecOps Tools (2025)

  • AWS CodeGuru – Reviews code and suggests performance improvements, security fixes, and bug detection using ML models.
  • Datadog AI Monitoring – Detects anomalies, forecasts infrastructure load, and triggers alerts via predictive analytics.
  • Threat Stack – Provides continuous security monitoring for cloud infrastructure, with AI-driven threat detection.
  • Blameless – Helps DevOps teams manage incidents using AI-powered root cause analysis and postmortem generation.
  • New Relic AI – Uses machine learning to correlate telemetry data and reduce alert noise across observability tools.
  • Zebrium – Automatically finds root causes of incidents by analyzing logs and metrics, ideal for complex microservice architectures.

By offloading these operational responsibilities to AI systems, development teams can ensure reliability, scalability, and security—without burning cycles on constant manual oversight.

5. The Future of Programming

Mark Zuckerberg: The Future of Programming | Lex Fridman Podcast Clips

By 2025, programming is no longer just about writing lines of code—it's about describing what you want and guiding AI tools to build it for you. The rise of generative AI is transforming the software landscape, shrinking development teams and empowering individuals with minimal technical background to build apps, websites, and tools that once required large engineering departments.

Thanks to models like GPT-4, Claude, and CodeWhisperer, small teams can now tackle enterprise-level projects. These AI tools assist in generating, debugging, testing, and optimizing code across popular languages such as Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, and Go. They also analyze context, follow coding conventions, and integrate with Git, CI/CD pipelines, and documentation systems.

For beginners, AI tutors like Khanmigo and interactive assistants in tools like Replit and GitHub Copilot Chat provide step-by-step help, demystifying coding concepts and allowing self-guided learning. These tools answer questions in plain English and walk users through building real-world projects.

In creative coding and web design, AI-powered platforms let designers describe layouts and functionality in natural language, automatically generating responsive HTML/CSS/JavaScript code. With plugins for animation, SEO optimization, and accessibility baked in, creators can go from idea to deployment with little technical friction.

Meanwhile, backend operations—from DevOps to database configuration—are increasingly handled by AI agents that monitor performance, recommend optimizations, and adjust infrastructure in real time. Code review bots catch bugs, enforce style guides, and propose security patches before human eyes ever see the code.

Still, as automation rises, so does the need for human creativity and ethical oversight. Prompt engineering, system design, storytelling, and problem framing become essential skills. Artists, writers, designers, and philosophers may find themselves as key contributors in a field once reserved for engineers.

In this new paradigm, the coder of the future may not write code—but they'll still need to think like one. The ability to describe, design, and guide AI toward meaningful outcomes will define the next generation of digital creators.

6. Unit Exercise

Objective: Build and iterate a simple, beautiful website using AI tools for fast HTML/CSS generation—then shape it with your own creative direction. The final result should feel like your own expressive digital space. Use AI for speed, but rely on your taste and imagination for design, visuals, and storytelling.

1. Plan Your Website

2. Generate a Starting Layout with AI

3. Make It Yours

4. Experiment With Style

5. Publish and Reflect

Reminder: AI speeds things up—but your creativity is the soul of the work. The most powerful part is the design, the mood, and the story you bring to it. That's the human magic.

7. Discussion Questions

As AI reshapes how we write, design, and maintain code, it brings both new opportunities and serious questions. These prompts are meant to help you think critically about the changing landscape of digital work—and how your creativity, values, and vision can help shape what comes next.

8. Bibliography

Dynamic AI Co-Creation: A Human-Centered Approach
by Will Luers | Sept. 2024