Never Trust a Monkey! Can We Trust AI-Generated Code?

Abstract

We’re in the middle of another leap in abstraction. Like compilers, cloud, and containers before it, AI coding agents arrived with hype, fear, and broken assumptions. We gave the monkeys GPUs. Sometimes they output Shakespeare. Other times, they confidently ship code that compiles, passes tests, and still does the wrong thing. The problem is the gap between what we mean and what actually runs. This talk delivers a practical framework for developing with AI coding agents, built on three principles: the Chasm (the intent gap between human meaning and generated code), the Context (the shared knowledge base that replaces guessing with grounding), and the Chain (the intent integrity flow from prompt to spec to test to code, where every step remains verifiable and context-grounded). You’ll leave with a working model for AI-assisted development where humans own the meaning and machines do the typing. Trust your context. Trust your guardrails. Never trust a monkey.