It’s about that time of year again where I check in with the community to see if we can get the front page aligned with what people are interested in knowing and what people are interested in talking about. As the title might have given away, there’s one topic more hot than most at the moment, and that’s AI.

I am a C++ developer by trade, and my place of employ has just started to roll out Claude licences for those interested, so the topic of AI assisted programming is very much on my mind. I’m not just going to go out there and say “AI bad”. I don’t necessarily think it’s a productive conversation to have. The reality is that we’re going to see more projects that make use of it in some form, and some are likely to warrant attention.

Going forwards, I think it’s important that we highlight when projects we do feature make use of AI, and to what extent if such information is available. My hope is that this will strike a reasonable balance of being able to share projects that might look interesting, and giving people who want to avoid AI related projects a simple indicator.

Obviously not every project is going to be so open with their usage, and we have no intention of starting witch hunts by deep diving code and looking for em dashes in the comments. The aim here is to make whatever public information there is accessible for people reading here, and just make things a touch clearer for the people who are looking for that kind of disclaimer.

With that aside though, I am interested to know what the general consensus is among the user base. Are you open to playing ports assisted by AI if it’s the only port available, or happens to offer something unique? Do you draw the line at vibe coding, or do you avoid any project that has Claude listed as a contributor? We sadly don’t have access to polls on the front page any more, but I will make sure to keep up with any replies as they come in.

 

[ChibiMofo]

This^

You know there's a like button to hit that saves you the trouble of having to type the word "this," right?

ChatGPT is AI and can make mistakes​

Post automatically merged: Today at 3:33 AM

thank you good sir. we need more of this.

You too.

 

[Kitocco]

posts like this invites divisive takes so don't be surprised.

Post automatically merged: Today at 2:39 AM

thats also why i mentioned earlier its better to not discuss ai because its so divisive. there is nothing to be discussed AI good or bad is stupid.

Post automatically merged: Today at 2:42 AM

when humans come together discussing whether AI is good or bad we look like a bunch of gorillas in a zoo having a fight ngl.

Post automatically merged: Today at 1:44 AM

ngl, I imagine the amish have it pretty good I wonder how healthy their sanity levels are at.

Well, so much for my attempt at a compromise...

 

[Gamehopper]

Well, so much for my attempt at a compromise...

I am gonna head out of this discussion I need fresh air from this topic. this discussion is the worst dumbass battlegrounds that people stand on or against on in the 21st century. fr we need better issues to fight over and this aint it.

 

[Mixtape]

I'm late to the party here, but after reading through the thread thus far I have some thoughts. In no particular order:

• Lots of people here are talking about an "AI tag", and I'm sympathetic to the aim of what they're proposing. At the same time though, I worry about the long-term burden of maintaining what that means and the impact that it might have on discourse across the forum. "Using AI in the development of a project" just covers far too broad of a range of actions for a single tag to be meaningful. Obviously generating code is AI assistance, but AI has crept into so many other aspects of the development process as well. Just off the top of my head:
  • If I write my entire project's codebase myself, but subsequently have AI review it for security issues that I was otherwise unaware of, does my project deserve to be AI-flagged?
  • If I use AI to generate the documentation for a library that I write and subsequently fact-check it, should my project be flagged? What if I'm not a native English speaker and use AI for translation?
  • If I use AI to broadly outline how I may be able to implement a feature but subsequently write the actual code myself, should my project be flagged?
  • If I search for documentation of a dependency for my project, but that documentation is AI generated by somebody else, is my project AI-assisted?
  • If I search for something quick and simple in the process of making my project and read Google's AI summary at the top of the results, did I use AI in my project?

These are all rhetorical questions, and I share them to demonstrate that each could be an entire thread of its own. Please do not reply to this post to answer them. My concern is not with the short-term "where do we draw the line" conversation, but rather with how that line shifts and evolves long-term.

Different camps are going to answer the above questions differently at different times. Most importantly, a developer may be less AI-averse than commenters on their project's thread and therefore be accused of "lying" about whether their project used AI. I can reasonably see conflicts emerging between well-meaning individuals on either side just because they have different views on what deserves a tag. In my opinion, those sorts of discussions will sour the mood of the forum long-term and prove detrimental to the development of a collaborative community.
​

Intuitively, the solution to this would, at first, appear to be clear and consistent sitewide guidelines about what gets a tag and what doesn't. As this technology continues to evolve though and as companies continue to introduce novel use cases for it in different places, I worry that the community will get stuck endlessly re-litigating this question. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it's work that will take staff's time, potentially incite arguments, and result in guidelines shifting frequently. What's more, with all due respect to site staff, there's always a real chance of personal biases influencing broader policy.

My point, therefore, is that implementing and requiring a tag has real consequences in the long-term that need to be thoroughly considered before things move forward.​

• To echo what others have said here, AI has indisputably become an important part of the modern software engineering toolkit. However, AI itself is not the software engineer, and I think that's an important distinction in this conversation. Regardless of the extent to which AI assistance becomes broadly accepted, the ultimate accountability for what is made needs to rest with the developer that created it, especially if the end product has flaws that introduce harm onto its users.
  
  It's a tool. Like with any tool, it has places where it's appropriate to use and places where it isn't. Much like when you use a hammer to drive in a screw, you can't be surprised when you get backlash for writing insecure code with Claude.
  
  
• I personally don't believe that comments in the vein of "this project was coded using AI and therefore I don't like it" contribute meaningfully to news or project release threads. There are real reasons to be critical of AI usage in a project, like when it results in security issues, poor UX, or the loss of an opportunity for an artist to create high-quality assets. However, in a world without AI, the code itself and the methods used to create it were rarely (if ever) an immediate concern for end users. What mattered was how the project worked when you first used it, and I worry that focusing too much on how the sausage gets made takes away from that.
  
  In saying this, I'm fully cognizant of the fact that bad code can lead to issues with maintainability and collaboration. I also don't think it's unrealistic to imagine that AI could amplify those problems by reducing core maintainers' understanding of their projects' codebases. That being said, the root of those problems is the way in which AI is used rather than AI itself. I think the appropriate way to be critical of AI-assisted projects isn't to point to commits from Claude and say "that's bad", but rather to demonstrate how they detract from the project's ability to achieve its goals. If someone can't be bothered to do that, then I fail to see how their comment adds to the thread. To me, it feels as though they are aiming only to state their broader opposition to AI usage and distracting from the topic at hand. At that point I would suggest having a more in-depth debate on their philosophy in a more appropriate forum like Off-Topic or EoF.
  
  
• There are good arguments to be made about the geopolitical/cultural/economic/social/etc. effects of AI at scale and the degree to which we, as humans, each contribute to that. They hang like a cloud over all of these conversations, and for good reason. I have my opinions (that I will not share here) on them, but I also don't think that they necessarily matter in most project threads. Regardless of what communities like GBAtemp do (or don't do) to police AI use, there are enormous quantities of money flowing specifically to keep the economic engine behind AI going, and they will continue to do so until it becomes unsustainable for one reason or another. Given that reality, I don't personally believe that there is anything to be gained in raising global impacts as an argument against individual projects using AI. Doing so will only serve to divide what's already a relatively niche community without making a meaningful dent in the broader issue.
  
  This isn't to say that individual commenters aren't entitled to hold stances on the matter. In fact, I'd argue that the debate over whether global impacts render AI a boon or a hindrance is a defining topic of the times. However, I don't think that project threads or news posts are the time or place for that discourse. There's just too much depth in the conversation and too much entrenchment on either side to prevent it from boiling over and dominating a thread. Maybe that's fine on hierarchical forums, but it actively detracts from the reader experience on linear ones.

That's all that I have to say for now, but I also want to stew on this for a bit and see if I come up with anything else. I'll follow up if I do.

 

[Vixi]

all people have is one job ignore what you dont like problem fucking solved

My mom didn't like having cancer, should she have ignored it instead of getting it removed?

 

[Jayro]

Lots of A.i. assisted cores are being brought to MiSTer, and honestly we wouldn't have so much good stuff without the A.i. helping. The devs making this stuff are working hard to debug the outputs into some quality work, and that's admirable. A.i. assisted is not the same as A.i. slop, and the majority of users here can tell the difference. I don't think this is as big a deal as it's being made out to be. It's pretty easy to tell the difference between slop, and a good A.i. assisted effort.

 

[Beware]

posts like this invites divisive takes so don't be surprised.

Post automatically merged: Today at 2:39 AM

thats also why i mentioned earlier its better to not discuss ai because its so divisive. there is nothing to be discussed AI good or bad is stupid.

Post automatically merged: Today at 2:42 AM

when humans come together discussing whether AI is good or bad we look like a bunch of gorillas in a zoo having a fight ngl.

“I can’t physically control myself from simping for the machine even when expressly asked not to by the mods” isn’t quite the take you think it is.

The thread’s intent was clear and you seem the be the only one going on and on about this tired bullshit across 8 pages.

 

[Gamehopper]

My mom didn't like having cancer, should she have ignored it instead of getting it removed?

yes.

 

[Jayro]

As an artist I'm naturally against AI but also can't deny it can be helpful.
In projects like this I guess it's fine as long as AI isn't doing 100% of the job. I like human results.

So far I've rejected all machine translated games.

I only like when A.i. can takes on the really tedious tasks, like having to patch several files into other files, or stuff like that where a CMD wizard would normally be needed. I hate using command-lines, myself. I also use it to erase backgrounds in photos, because that can really be brutal. Saves me about half an hour of tedious cutouts, and ends up looking better too.

 

[Gamehopper]

“I can’t physically control myself from simping for the machine even when expressly asked not to by the mods” isn’t quite the take you think it is.

The thread’s intent was clear and you seem the be the only one going on and on about this tired bullshit across 8 pages.

oh you have know idea what kind of take it is because you ain't listenin. I ain't glazing AI as you are reading it out to be my concern is for the protection of the sanity and mental well-being of developers who do not need to become a punching bag for anti AI haters. and yet you call that simping to a machine. sure I simp to a machine. who gives a fuck. party is over! now lets fight over better issues because AI ain't it. this is dumb as a box of rocks.

 

[Beware]

oh you have know idea what kind of take it is because you ain't listenin. I ain't glazing AI as you are reading it out to be my concern is for the protection of the sanity and mental well-being of developers who do not need to become a punching bag for anti AI haters. and yet you call that simping to a machine. sure I simp to a machine. who gives a fuck. party is over! now lets fight over better issues because AI ain't it. this is dumb as a box of rocks.

This thread has nothing to do with that word soup. You think you’re somehow being enlightening or expressing something profound but you’re actually just topic trolling a thread that has absolutely fuckall to do with your weird behavior. The thread is about how the Temp should cover stories. Your need to have your cold takes validated is pathological. I have said literally nothing about my feelings of AI use in programming yet you’ve spun a whole story already. Touch grass

 

[Gamehopper]

you know, during covid times. i didn't like wearing the mask on the bus. and you know what I did when I was told it was mandated to wear the mask? I rebelled. i said fuck you! It was ridiculous to wear a mask eventually I thought about it and I was like wait something is off here. this is america! why are they saying wear a mask? this makes no sense! this is a free country? so i simply refused to do what i was told to do. all those who oppose AI are in the matrix. you love doing what you're told! you didn't learn the meaning of the movie the matrix.

 

[Beware]

you know, during covid times. i didn't like wearing the mask on the bus. and you know what I did when I was told it was mandated to wear the mask? I rebelled. i said fuck you! It was ridiculous to wear a mask eventually I thought about it and I was like wait something is off here. this is america! why are they saying wear a mask? this makes no sense! this is a free country? so i simply refused to do what i was told to do. all those who oppose AI are in the matrix. you love doing what you're told! you didn't learn the meaning of the movie the matrix.

Touching grass isn’t enough, you need a psychiatrist. No matter anyone’s feelings on AI use to claim you’re a free thinker for backing the trillion dollar corporations is actually fucking insane

 

[Gamehopper]

This thread has nothing to do with that word soup. You think you’re somehow being enlightening or expressing something profound but you’re actually just topic trolling a thread that has absolutely fuckall to do with your weird behavior. The thread is about how the Temp should cover stories. Your need to have your cold takes validated is pathological. I have said literally nothing about my feelings of AI use in programming yet you’ve spun a whole story already. Touch grass

well, that doesn't matter anymore. the pandora's box was opened when the post opened up a sore subject on the issue of AI which invites divisive takes.

Post automatically merged: Today at 4:27 AM

Touching grass isn’t enough, you need a psychiatrist. No matter anyone’s feelings on AI use to claim you’re a free thinker for backing the trillion dollar corporations is actually fucking insane

I don't back trillion dollar corporations.

 

[VinsCool]

I kinda wish this thread had a poll too.

 

[Beware]

well, that doesn't matter anymore. the pandora's box was opened when the post opened up a sore subject on the issue of AI which invites divisive takes.

No, you have done everything in your power to keep the thread derailed. There is no Pandora’s box. You control what buttons you press.

 

[Gamehopper]

No, you have done everything in your power to keep the thread derailed. There is no Pandora’s box. You control what buttons you press.

this is a sore subject matter that no one needs to be discussing. so, yeah if thats what I am doing in your eyes then I am doing a good job. this topic needs to be derailed. You are welcome. I am doing everyone a favor.

 

[Beware]

this is a sore subject matter that no one needs to be discussing. so, yeah if thats what I am doing in your eyes then I am doing a good job. this topic needs to be derailed. You are welcome. I am doing everyone a favor.

This is literally pathological. Like obsessive, clinically concerning behavior.

 

[Gamehopper]

This is literally pathological. Like obsessive, clinically concerning behavior.

the topic needs to be shut down. fr

 

[Beware]

the topic needs to be shut down. fr

Considering this weirdo is openly admitting to intentionally derailing the topic can the mods do something about it? The mods who run the site felt the actual topic (coverage of releases) needed discussing, why is this nonsense allowed?