The AI pair programmer myth

People call AI tools "pair programmers." The label leads to the wrong expectations.

A pair programmer pushes back. They say "what about this edge case?" or "I think we should take a different approach." The relationship runs both directions.

AI coding tools run one direction. You direct, they execute. Claude doesn't question my architecture or suggest I'm solving the wrong problem. If I ask for a bad implementation, I get a well-written bad implementation.

Once I accepted this, the frustration disappeared. The frustration came from expecting dialogue and getting compliance.

I started working like a lead engineer with a fast, knowledgeable team. More time on architecture and specs, less on implementation. Reviewing output like I'd review a pull request, catching the judgment calls that AI skips.

The mental model matters. Thinking of it as a peer makes you passive, waiting for insight from both sides. Thinking of it as your team makes you active, owning the decisions.

The best code I've shipped with Claude came from sessions where I did more thinking and less typing.