I’ve honestly forgotten what frontend development felt like before AI. It slipped into our workflows so smoothly and brought so many powerful tools with it.
At first, I didn’t expect we’d start using AI this quickly after it appeared. It’s evolving so fast that I sometimes feel like I can’t keep up… but I also feel like I have to.
My journey started like many others. Casually chatting with ChatGPT, asking random questions just to see how much it knew. I was surprised by how well it answered, especially when I started asking for code snippets or reusable React components. Eventually, I stopped visiting Stack Overflow because ChatGPT handled most of my everyday questions.
Then came tools like GitHub Copilot. Our boss encouraged us to try it, and I remember testing it with a teammate. We were shocked at how good it was. It didn’t just suggest syntax; it understood context and saved us serious time. It became a core part of our dev flow almost overnight.
And just when I thought Copilot was enough, I discovered Cursor IDE. With Copilot, I was coding faster. But with Cursor, it felt like I was just telling someone what to build.. And it actually worked. It’s not just speed; it’s less work overall.
These days, I mostly review what AI writes and add the specific logic or tweaks it can’t know. And honestly? It feels like this is just the beginning. We might be just a year or two away from a whole new way of building software.
🔧 Tools I Use in My Workflow
Here are the main AI tools I use/used as a frontend developer and how I use them:
ChatGPT: For debugging, writing small utility functions, and quick code explanations.
GitHub Copilot: For live autocomplete, generating functions, and speeding up repetitive tasks.
Cursor IDE: Like Copilot on steroids. I ask it to edit or generate full components, and it delivers.
Notion AI (sometimes): For structuring blog outlines or documenting project notes.
💡 Real Ways AI Helps Me Every Day
Let me walk through a few examples from my actual day-to-day work:
✅ 1. Code Explanations & Debugging
When I get stuck with a confusing bug or a piece of legacy code, I copy and paste it into ChatGPT. It usually helps me understand what’s going on faster than reading docs or searching forums.
🧪 2. Generating Tests
Writing tests can be repetitive. I use AI to generate the initial structure of unit tests and then I adjust it to fit the real edge cases.
🎨 3. Quick UI Ideas or Copywriting
Need placeholder content for a hero section? Or a better button label? I let ChatGPT or Figma AI suggest a few options to pick from then I refine them.
📘 4. Docs, Commits & Readme Files
I use AI to write clean commit messages and even start README files. It saves mental energy for the actual coding work.
📚 5. Learning New Libraries
When I’m learning something new (like a chart library or animation library), I ask ChatGPT for “the simplest example” or a side-by-side comparison of two options. Way faster than Googling and sorting through outdated blog posts.
🧭 Where I Still Rely on Myself
Even though AI is amazing, there are a few things I still prefer to do manually:
Building complex logic (like app state or custom hooks)
Planning component architecture
Performance optimization
Full code reviews (I never ship AI code blindly)
I think of AI more like a super helpful teammate, not someone who can replace the thinking part of the job.
🔑 Tips for Using AI as a Developer
If you’re just starting to use AI in your workflow, here are a few things that helped me:
Be specific with your prompts. The better your input, the better the output.
Double-check the code. AI sometimes returns outdated or slightly wrong syntax.
Use it to support your thinking, not replace it.
Talk to it like a teammate. I often give feedback like: “Try that again, but with better variable names.”
🚀 Final Thoughts
AI has changed how I work and honestly, made me enjoy coding even more. I feel faster, more productive, and sometimes even more creative.
It’s not magic, and it’s not perfect. But it’s here, it’s powerful, and it’s evolving fast.
If you haven’t started using AI yet, I highly recommend experimenting with tools like ChatGPT, GitHub Copilot, or Cursor. You don’t have to go all in, just let it handle the boring stuff and give yourself more time to focus on the creative parts.
👉 Curious what tools other frontend developers are using with AI? Drop a comment or let’s chat!
Image credit: Illustration by unDraw
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