AI Tools for Developers: Elevate Your Coding Skills

Programmers sitting in the office in front of monitors displaying codes.

Generative AI is revolutionizing code development, bringing an end to the days of coding alone and battling syntax errors line by line. AI is now here to work with you, generating entire functions, automating repetitive tasks, and identifying bugs before they become major issues. AI is becoming an indispensable partner in the developer’s toolkit. Let’s look into the top options and see how they can improve your development process!



Chat-Based AI

ChatGPT

While ChatGPT is not explicitly designed for coding and won’t write complex programs, it can still be valuable. Think of it as a brainstorming AI assistant for smaller tasks. Describe your coding problem, and ChatGPT will suggest potential solutions, algorithms, and libraries you can check out. Just give clear and detailed prompts about the issue you face. However, it can generate basic code snippets in various languages, so you should always double-check their accuracy before using them.

Android Studio Bot

The conversation screen of the Android Studio Bot displays a conversation between the developer and the AI.

Photo credit: developers.android.com

Android Studio Bot is built directly into Android Studio, Google’s official IDE for Android development. If you are an Android developer, it will make your work easier. It is currently in beta and available for download with the latest Canary versions of Android Studio. It’s free to use and requires signing in with your Google account. While it’s still under development, it offers great features like code completion, natural language interaction, and code generation specifically for Android apps, and it continues to learn and improve.


Code Completion and Generation

Amazon CodeWhisperer

The screen of the Amazon CodeWhisperer website displays a program code and the slogan "Get more done faster"

Photo credit: aws.amazon.com

This tool can generate code in real-time by analyzing your current code and comments to understand your intent. Then, it will generate code suggestions in real-time, from single lines to entire functions. It uses machine learning models trained on a massive dataset of code. Amazon offers it free with limited usage. It supports 15 languages, with the strongest support for Java, Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, and C#.

Mutable AI

A screen of the Mutable.ai website.

Photo credit: mutable.ai

This tool is best at code completion, especially when working across multiple files. One of its cool features is that it identifies repetitive tasks and suggests ways to automate them. If you have just started coding, Mutable will significantly help you learn best practices for code organization and automation. If you are an experienced developer, it can save you time so you can focus on more complex functions.

Copilot by GitHub

The screen of the Copilot by GitHub website displays a program code.

Photo credit: github.com

As in its name, this AI assistant is a real-time coding companion. Copilot can generate entire functions, classes, and even boilerplate code based on your natural language descriptions or comments within your existing code. As you type, it will suggest relevant code snippets, function calls, and variable names. Plus, it will suggest ways to improve your code structure, variable names, and overall readability. It is a real game-changer. It supports lots of languages, with the strongest support for Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, and C++.

Tabnine

The screen of the Tabnine AI website displays a programcode and the slogan "Ship software faster with AI built around you".

Photo credit: tabnine.com

Like Copilot, Tabnine excels at suggesting relevant code completions as you type. It analyzes your codebase, comments, and programming language to provide context-aware suggestions. While not a dedicated testing tool, it can suggest basic unit tests based on your code. Tabnine prioritizes security and keeps your code on its servers to protect sensitive information. Compared to Copilot, Tabnine supports a wider range of programming languages.


Testing

Testim

The screen of the Testim website displays a slogan "Automate web and mobile testing with AI".

Photo credit: testim.io

Testim is an AI-powered testing automation platform designed to streamline the software testing process. It simplifies automating tests for web and mobile applications and uses machine learning to create intelligent test cases.

FAQs

What are AI tools for developers?

AI tools for developers are software applications that leverage artificial intelligence to automate tasks, suggest code improvements, and even generate code from scratch.

Should I trust AI-generated code?

AI-generated code can contain errors. Always double-check and test AI-generated code before deploying it in production.

Are AI tools going to replace developers?

Most likely, no. They are designed to assist developers by automating repetitive tasks and boosting efficiency. However, human expertise in critical thinking, creativity, domain knowledge, and judgment will remain irreplaceable.

Are there any free AI developer tools available?

Yes. Many AI tools for developers offer a limited free plan with basic functions, so you can experiment with them before committing to a paid plan. GitHub Copilot and Tabnine are some of them.

Are there any security concerns associated with using AI-powered code generation?

AI-generated code might contain vulnerabilities if the training data includes insecure coding practices or attackers manipulate it. Thorough review and security testing are necessary before you deploy AI-generated code.