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    Tech Trenches

    techtrenches.dev · Personal blog · on HN since 2026

    A Substack-style blog on AI's effects on software engineering, engineering culture, the talent pipeline and cyber conflict.

    Visit blogHN submissions
    AI & Machine LearningCareer & WorkTech Industry
    What HN says

    HN commenters debate its claims about AI-driven burnout, question whether posts are AI-assisted, and dislike its visual style; one tests its sources with an LLM.

    Stats for nerds
    17HN people shared it
    15linked in comments
    34story points
    May 2026last shared

    Top posts on HN

    1. 1
      Anthropic Kept Every Promise It Could Afford
      1 person · 8 points · first shared 2026 · 1 comments on HN
    2. 2
      The West Forgot How to Make Things. Now It's Forgetting How to Code
      2 people · 6 points · first shared 2026 · 2 comments on HN
    3. 3
      The Snake That Ate Itself: What Claude Source Revealed About AI Engg Culture
      4 people · 4 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN
    4. 4
      The First Full-Scale Cyber War
      2 people · 3 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN
    5. 5
      AI Won't Save Us from the Talent Crisis We Created (Sep 25, 2025)
      1 person · 3 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN
    6. 6
      The Human Cost of 10x: How AI Is Physically Breaking Senior Engineers
      3 people · 2 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN
    7. 7
      Your Claude.md Is a Wish List, Not a Contract
      1 person · 2 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN
    8. 8
      RAG Is Easy. Your Data Isn't
      1 person · 2 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN
    9. 9
      The Country of Geniuses That Doesn't Exist
      1 person · 1 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN
    10. 10
      AI Surveillance: Age Verification Meets Your Chat Logs
      1 person · 1 points · first shared 2026 · Discussion on HN

    What HN people wrote when they linked it

    • Kim_BruningMay 2026

      https://techtrenches.dev/p/the-human-cost-of-10x-how-ai-is-physically "Follow each link in this document. Read each link's contents against the contents in this document. Create a report: for each link list a working hyperlink, whether it exists, what claim it supports, whether it supports or fails to support it, and why. If unable to fetch the source, Stop and report failure."

      And now it errors out on gemini.google.com. . This is like early days unix scripting; I didn't add the equivalent of "#!/bin/bash -euo pipefail" ; and I didn't catch it because most systems already include something like it in their ".bashrc" (system prompt or weights) anyway.

      This is so frustrating. I'm sorry. It's like the 1980's 8 bit era again, some systems actually work, others are terrible, and I didn't realize it can be like this for some folks. You could come away with the conclusion that this whole "computer" thing is all just a fad that'll never amount to anything. (meanwhile , the program works perfectly on my own machine, right over here of course %-) )

    • HarHarVeryFunnyMay 2026

      > AI is the silver bullet - my output is genuinely 10X what it was before claude code existed.

      This reminds me of ThePrimeagen's noting that Dario was right about 90% of all software being written by AI. 90%+ of all useful software is still being written by humans, but now we've also got non-programmers like Gary Tan pushing the button to generate garbage piles of AI generated code at 10x the volume of what humans are generating.

      Or look at Claude Code itself, the poster child for what AI generated code looks like, especially when you're operating in YOLO "never mind the quality, count the LOC" mode. Over a half million lines of bug ridden crap when 10-50K could have done the job.

      https://techtrenches.dev/p/the-snake-that-ate-itself-what-claude

    • flailMay 2026

      A quick smoke test, then. Gemini 3, Thinking Mode.
      The article: https://techtrenches.dev/p/the-human-cost-of-10x-how-ai-is-physically
      The prompt: literally what you suggested.

      Gemini: The article focuses on the environmental and human labor costs of scaling Artificial Intelligence, specifically focusing on water usage, electricity, and "ghost work."

      Which is hilarious, since the article doesn't even mention the words "water" or "electricity." Gemini remains unfazed, reporting the links that are not in the article (some don't exist at all) to make the final ruling: "The Tech Trenches document is highly accurate in its citations."

      Now, I know. Had I used Claude Code with relevant skills, it would have done better. But would it be good?

    • duskdozerMay 2026

      >https://techtrenches.dev/p/the-snake-that-ate-itself-what-cl...

      Ugh, I've started having a visceral reaction to that typeface+card-layout+color-scheme combo; is the author using it ironically?

    • microtonalMay 2026

      Relevant post with some military examples as well:

      https://techtrenches.dev/p/the-west-forgot-how-to-make-things

      (Has some AI tells though, probably AI-assisted?)

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