A framework for non-engineers to assess which applications are suitable for 'vibe coding', categorized by risk level from green to red light, based on 100+ hours of experience.
A colloquial term for using AI-assisted or generative AI tools to create software applications, often by non-engineers, based on natural language prompts or 'vibes' rather than traditional, line-by-line coding.
Any data that could potentially identify a specific individual. The post warns that vibe-coded landing pages may inadvertently collect and store PII, creating a security risk.
Platforms that allow users to create applications through graphical user interfaces and configuration instead of traditional programming. Vibe coding is an evolution of this concept.
A development approach where coding is guided by a formal specification. Mentioned by a commenter as a more mature and scalable sibling to the more intuitive 'vibe coding'.
circa August 2025
based on a LinkedIn post by Jason Lemkin
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jasonmlemkin_which-apps-make-sense-for-vibe-coding-by-activity-7355329890079952898-1YXC/An enterprise-level CRM platform. The author advises against trying to replicate it.
A website builder. 'Green Light' projects are compared to 'Squarespace on steroids'.
An Integrated Development Environment (IDE) from Amazon Web Services (AWS) for spec-driven coding.
A collaborative interface design tool, suggested as an alternative for user feedback prototypes.
A no-code platform suitable for low-complexity enterprise apps with security control.
A utility-first Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) framework for rapidly building user interfaces (UIs).
A collection of re-usable UI components for building prototypes quickly.
A React framework for building full-stack web applications.
Basic informational web apps with no customer data, like content sites or company pages, are considered the safest (Green Light). They present little risk and are a great use case for the technology.
The primary drawback is fragility. As complexity increases, the application becomes exponentially harder to test and maintain. Each new feature can introduce unforeseen issues, making the system unstable.
Vibe coding is an evolution of no-code, leveraging generative AI and natural language prompts for a more fluid, conversational development experience. However, as commenter Scott Brinker noted, the types of applications suitable for each (e.g., internal tools, prototypes) have remained largely the same over the years. Vibe coding is more about the 'how' than the 'what'.
No. The author strongly advises against this, classifying it as a 'Red Light' activity. The underlying complexity, security, and scalability of enterprise software are far beyond the capabilities of current vibe coding tools.