[danenania]

Humans make subtle errors all the time too though. AI results still need to be checked over for anything important, but it's on a vector toward being much more reliable than a human for any kind of repetitive task.

Currently, if you ask an LLM to do something small and self-contained like solve leetcode problems or implement specific algorithms, they will have a much lower rate of mistakes, in terms of implementing the actual code, than an experienced human engineer. The things it does badly are more about architecture, organization, style, and taste.

[gjadi]

But with a software bug, the error becomes rapidly widespread and systematic, whereas human error are often not. Doing wrong with a couple of prescription because the doc worked for 12+ hrs is different from systematically doing wrong on a significant number of prescriptions until someone double check the results.

[theshrike79]

An error in a massive hand-crafted Excel sheet also becoms systematic and wide-spread.

Because Excel has no way of doing unit tests or any kind of significant validation. Big BIG things have gone to shit because of Excel.

Things that would have never happened if the same thing was a vibe-coded python script and a CSV.

[gjadi]

I agree with the excel thing. Not with thinking it can't happen with vibecoded python.

I think handling sensitive data should be done by professional. A lawyer handles contracts, a doctor handles health issue and a programmer handles data manipulation through programs. This doesn't remove risk of errors completely, but it reduces it significantly.

In my home, it's me who's impacted if I screw up a fix in my plumbing, but I won't try to do it at work or in my child's school.

I don't care if my doctor vibe codes an app to manipulate their holidays pictures, I care if they do it to manipulate my health or personal data.

[theshrike79]

Of course issues CAN happen with Python, but at least with Python we have tools to check for the issues.

Bunch of your personal data is most likely going through some Excel made by a now-retired office worker somewhere 15 years ago. Nobody understands how the sheet works, but it works so they keep using it :) A replacement system (a massive SaaS application) has been "coming soon" for 8 years and cost millions, but it still doesn't work as well as the Excel sheet.