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AI Learning

AI Coding Tools

iAs of: September 2026

Model names, tool versions, and prices reflect the state as of September 2026. Important: GitHub Copilot has billed on a usage basis since June 1, 2026 — every plan includes a monthly allowance of AI credits.

Wissen

The Revolution in Software Development

The way software is written has fundamentally changed. According to the JetBrains Developer Survey, 85% of all developers are already using AI tools in their daily work in 2025. AI writes code, finds bugs, explains complex systems, and even creates entire applications.

But AI coding tools are not only interesting for professional developers. More and more people without programming skills are using them to build their own small projects -- from websites and automations to apps.

iYou do not need to be a developer

You do not need to be a developer to work with AI coding tools. Many people use these tools to build simple websites, analyze data, or automate tasks -- without a computer science degree.

The Most Important AI Coding Tools

GitHub Copilot ($10/month)

GitHub Copilot was the first major AI coding tool in 2022. It works as a "copilot" in your development environment and automatically suggests code while you type. Since 2025, it offers an Agent Mode that can solve larger tasks independently -- you describe the goal, and Copilot writes and tests the code.

Cursor ($20/month)

Cursor is a complete development environment (IDE) built from the ground up for AI. Especially impressive are the Background Agents: You give Cursor a task, and it works on it in the background -- while you do something else. Cursor understands the entire codebase of a project and can make changes across many files.

Claude Code (API-based)

Claude Code by Anthropic is a terminal-based AI agent. It runs in the command line and can work directly with files, Git, and other developer tools. Claude Code is currently number 1 on the SWE-bench, an important benchmark for AI programming capabilities. With Agent Teams, multiple Claude Code instances can work in parallel on different tasks.

Windsurf (Free)

Windsurf, now part of Cognition AI, offers an affordable entry into the world of AI coding tools with its Cascade Agent. The free version is sufficient for many use cases, making it especially attractive for beginners.

Which AI coding tool is currently number 1 on the SWE-bench?

Verstehen

Vibe Coding: A New Way to Program

The term "Vibe Coding" describes an entirely new approach: Instead of writing every line of code yourself, you give the AI agent the direction. You describe in natural language what you want to build, and the agent implements it.

How Vibe Coding works:

  1. You describe your goal: "Build a website with a todo list that saves tasks"
  2. The AI agent writes the code
  3. You test the result and provide feedback
  4. The agent adjusts the code
  5. You repeat this cycle until the result is right

This is not a future dream -- many people already work this way today. The quality of the result strongly depends on how well you can describe your wishes. Prompting skills are therefore more important than ever, even in coding.

Step 1: Describe your goal

You describe what you want to build in plain language. No programming language needed — just explain it like you would to a colleague.

Example:"Build a website with a todo list that saves tasks in LocalStorage."

!Code Quality and Security

AI-generated code can contain security vulnerabilities, outdated libraries, or subtle bugs. Never use AI-generated code in production systems without reviewing it -- especially for web applications, database access, or user data processing.

What does the term 'Vibe Coding' best describe?

Anwenden

*Vibe Coding in practice

With Vibe Coding, you do not need to be able to read or write code. But you need to be able to clearly describe what you want and evaluate the result. That is a new skill that anyone can learn.

Reflect

AI coding tools are democratizing software development. You no longer need to spend years learning programming languages to build your own digital projects. But you need new skills: communicating clearly, evaluating results, and breaking problems into small steps. These skills are the programming knowledge of the future.