Cheating? Or just "doing my job," with ChatGPT

 How the world has changed in just 2 short weeks

Two weeks ago, I started the annual Advent of Code challenge, a daily code challenge where participants compete to solve 2 part word problem usually related to helping Santa and his elves.

However, I was shocked to learn earlier this month, that some people were cheating by using an AI to write their code for them.

Curious to see what this AI could do for myself, and as you may have noticed, I became somewhat consumed by its capabilities.

Over the past 10 days, my opinion about using ChatGPT for the Advent of Code challenge has changed somewhat dramatically. Initially, I thought it was cheating, but now, I've come to think that the issue is more complex.

2022?  🤷‍♂️  

In 2022, when the rules were not clear and not everyone had access to ChatGPT, it could be considered cheating if some people used it and others did not.

2023?  👍😀👍

However, in 2023, AI will likely be more integrated into the process of developing software, and not using it may be equivalent to not using spell check in a college admissions essay or job cover letter.

Conclusion

In the coming months, we will start to feel the effects of injecting AI into our daily lives, and it's hard to predict what those effects will be. However, it's clear that AI will play a significant role in the future of software development, and it's important to consider how it will be integrated and used ethically.