AI Coding Tools - lesson 4 | HackIndia Skills

Key point

Own the diff

Treat AI output like a classmate’s pull request. Helpful, but not trusted by default.

You are responsible for reviewing and validating generated code before you accept it. If you cannot explain a change in an interview, do not merge it yet.

What to review

Start with the diff, not the AI’s explanation. The explanation may sound clean while the code changes more than you asked for.

Check whether the change matches your goal, touches the right files, keeps existing behavior, and avoids risky shortcuts like hardcoded secrets or unsafe user input handling.

Your to-do

Five-minute review loop

Do each one yourself, then tap it to tick it off. The ticks are only a checklist for you: they are not marked or scored.

Read the changed files line by line, especially auth, payments, database, and file upload code.
Ask why each new dependency, permission, environment variable, or API call is needed.
Run the app path that changed, not only the happy path.
Run existing tests or add one small test for the bug or feature.
Write one note in your README or PR about what you checked.

0 of 5 done

Tip

Use AI as reviewer

Ask the assistant to review the diff against clear criteria. Include your test cases or expected behavior so it can check against something concrete.

Still verify the result yourself. AI can miss security issues, invent reasons, or approve code that only looks correct.

Example

Review prompt

Use a prompt like this after the assistant writes code. It asks for review, not more code.

Review this change before I accept it.
Goal: Let users add an expense with amount, category, and note.
Constraints:
- Do not change authentication.
- Do not store secrets in code.
- Validate amount is a positive number.
- Keep existing API response shape.
Test cases to check:
- amount = 100 should pass
- amount = 0 should fail
- amount = -50 should fail
- missing category should fail
Output:
1. Files changed and why
2. Possible bugs or security issues
3. Tests I should run
4. Anything I must understand before merging

Common mistake

Do not review vibes

Beginners often accept code because the app starts. That is not enough.

A feature can appear to work while storing wrong data, skipping validation, leaking secrets, or breaking another page. Review the exact change and the risky edges.