Exploring the Vibes in Vibe-Coding

Source: Dev.to

Vibe Coding Olympics

Last week I attended a “Vibe Coding Olympics” hackathon with about 50 participants. The premise was simple: build a working prototype for a service that improves the lives of bike‑delivery couriers in 20 minutes, using any tool, and judge it on “vibes” alone.

Demo:

Take‑aways

• Your vibe matters. The crucial ingredient is the unique vibe you bring to the project. Many participants simply implemented the example provided by the organizers.
• AI assistants are popular. Most people used 1–2 Claude Code assistants (or similar). It’s wise to have a backup tool (e.g., GitHub Copilot) in case your token quota runs out during a live‑coding session. 🙈
• Taste can’t be automated. Attendees repeatedly asked how I made the interfaces look “pretty.” It boils down to deliberately cultivating base prompts (e.g., in a CLAUDE.md file) that capture your personal style and philosophy, and writing prompts in a non‑generic voice that is uniquely yours.
• Prioritize human‑centered purpose. With much of the technical work automated, focus on genuine purpose, concept, and design rather than superficial goals like “increase dopamine” or “maximize engagement.”

Stupid Hackathon

The second event was a “Stupid Hackathon,” which encouraged us to create something completely silly and useless. The goal was to re‑introduce friction into technology while being playful and artistic.

Project repository: