karpathy-coder

Topics in the source

• Karpathy Coder — Active Coding Discipline
• The four principles
• 1. Think Before Coding
• 2. Simplicity First
• 3. Surgical Changes
• 4. Goal-Driven Execution
• Slash command
• Python tools (scripts/)

Derived from Andrej Karpathy's observations on LLM coding pitfalls. This is not just guidelines — it ships Python tools that detect violations, a review agent, a slash command, and a pre-commit hook. "The models make wrong assumptions on your behalf and just run along with them without checking. They don't manage their confusion, don't seek clarifications, don't surface inconsistencies, don't present tradeoffs, don't push back when they should." "They really like to overcomplicate code and APIs, bloat abstractions, don't clean up dead code... implement a bloated construction over 1000 lines when 100 would do." "LLMs are exceptionally good at looping until they meet specific goals... Don't tell it what to do, give it success criteria and watch it go." — Andrej Karpathy Don't assume. Don't hide confusion. Surface tradeoffs. State assumptions explicitly. If uncertain, ask. If multiple interpretations exist, present them — don't pick silently. If a simpler approach exists, say so. Push back when warranted. If something is unclear, stop. Name what's confusing. Ask. Minimum code that solves the problem. Nothing speculative. No features beyond what was asked. No abstractions for single-us

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