How has my relationship with AI evolved?

Short summary

A senior developer documents how AI tools evolved from productivity assistants into force multipliers through deliberate tool selection and workflow integration. Key insight: AI amplifies existing judgment; seniors generate better code than juniors not because AI is smarter, but because they decide what code to write. Modern workflow combines research/planning (large-context models), implementation (specialized tools), and automation (MCP integration) to eliminate non-core overhead.

• •AI amplifies existing judgment; senior developers generate better architecture than juniors using the same tools
• •Effective workflow separates research/planning (broad context models) from implementation (specialized IDE tools)
• •Non-core overhead (documentation, research, status updates) is where AI saves the most time

Generated with AI, which can make mistakes.