The AI Coding Comprehension Gap: Why Faster Isn't Always Better

AI coding agents have made developers dramatically faster. They've also made something else: a growing gap between the code that exists in a codebase and the code that developers actually understand. This post is about that gap — what causes it, why it matters, and what can actually be done about it. The Speed vs. Comprehension Tradeoff Here's a scenario that's become common: Developer opens Cursor (or Cline, Windsurf, etc.) Gives the agent a task: "build a user authentication flow" Agent writes