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Then vs Now: What's Changed Since 2023
15 min readAnyone starting their AI learning journey in 2026
The tools that make the journey easier today. If I were starting now, here's what I'd use.
1
AI Coding Assistants
2023: ChatGPT for coding help. 2026: Claude Code writes directly in VS Code.
Then (2023)
ChatGPT + TextEdit + copy-paste
Now (2026)
Claude Code writes directly in VS Code
2
Vector Databases
2023: Weaviate - expensive. 2026: Supabase pgvector - cheap.
Then (2023)
Weaviate Serverless ($600+/month)
Now (2026)
Supabase pgvector ($25/month)
3
Development Speed
2023: Months per feature. 2026: Days per complete product.
Then (2023)
Months per feature
Now (2026)
Days per complete product
4
What I'd Do Differently Today
Skip some foundational courses. Use AI coding tools from day 1.
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