06/29/2026
What’s the need of learning React when AI can generate the code?
This is a question someone asked me in my DM.
And honestly, I understand why many people think this way.
After all, AI can generate React code.
It can generate JavaScript code.
It can even generate code in languages I’ve never touched before.
But here’s the thing…
Writing code and building software are not the same thing.
Let me put it this way.
I can tell AI to build an application with C++ for me today.
The AI will happily generate thousands of lines of code.
But the moment something starts shining red, I’ll be confused.
Because I don’t understand C++.
I won’t know what the error means.
I won’t know where to look.
I won’t know whether AI gave me the right solution or confidently generated rubbish.
That’s exactly the point.
The real value is not in generating the code.
The real value is in understanding the code.
When AI gives you a React component, do you understand why state was used there?
Do you know why useEffect was added?
Do you know when to use Context API and when not to?
Do you know why your application is re-rendering 20 times unnecessarily?
Because trust me, AI will not always get it right.
There are times it will confidently give you a solution that looks perfect but creates three new problems.
If you don’t know React, how will you know?
That’s why I always tell people: don’t learn React because AI can’t write the code.
Learn React so that when AI writes the code, you’ll know whether it makes sense or not.
AI can make you faster.
AI can make your work easier.
But it cannot replace understanding.
At the end of the day, the best developers won’t be the ones who use AI the most.
They’ll be the ones who understand what AI is doing.
Because AI is a tool. Understanding is the skill.