List of AI Coding Tools

Key observations from testing various AI coding tools and extensions beyond direct LLM interfaces like Claude, Gemini, and GPT:

Interface & Accessibility:

• Natural language (English) has become the primary interface for code review and development
• This "English as code" approach makes programming accessible to non-technical users
• The barrier between technical and non-technical roles is blurring, suggesting future tech employees may all be effectively full-stack

Development Environment:

• Modern AI coding tools often provide complete IDE experiences
• AI agents can read and modify entire codebases while maintaining context
• Browser-based environments are gaining popularity, offering:
  • Full development capabilities
  • Integrated deployment pipelines
  • Built-in database and API infrastructure
  • Zero configuration requirements

Pricing & Performance:

• Transparent cost structures show token usage and API call pricing in real-time
• Tools often allow flexibility in choosing underlying AI models
• Most popular tools balance coding capability with cost-effectiveness
• Rate limiting is common during testing phases
• Many tools offer unlimited access post-release

IDEs & Platforms

• Cursor - A powerful AI-native IDE built on VS Code, offering chat, edits, and debugging
• PearAI - AI pair programming environment with real-time collaboration
• Replit - Cloud IDE with built-in AI capabilities and instant deployment
• Lovable - AI-powered development environment focused on developer experience
• Windsurf - Modern AI coding environment by Codeium
• Aider - Terminal-based AI coding assistant
• Bolt - Instant, secure cloud development environment
• Srcbook - AI-powered code exploration and documentation
• Cody - AI coding assistant with deep code understanding
• Alex - Cursor-like AI assistant for Xcode
• Codebuff - AI-enhanced development environment
• Llama Coder - Open-source AI coding assistant powered by Together AI
• v0 - AI-powered UI component and template generator by Vercel
• Goose - AI-powered code editor with integrated assistance
• Void Editor - Modern AI-enhanced code editing environment

Extensions

Most of these extensions are built for VS Code, as it's become the dominant platform for AI coding assistants:

• Cline - AI coding assistant extension
• Roo cline - Enhanced version of Cline
• CodeGPT - GPT-powered coding assistant
• Codeium - AI code completion and chat (makers of Windsurf)