Agent-based AI coding costs more than it looks, and the tooling around the model matters

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A developer found that chat-based AI coding hides costs, since every file change requires manual copy-paste and context re-sharing. Agent tools instead let the model run tests and fix its own errors, with a surrounding harness supplying files and a terminal. JetBrains' 2026 survey of over 15,000 developers reported that 90% use AI coding agents at work at least weekly. Artificial Analysis data showed one Claude Code run took 146 turns, about an hour, and roughly $11.42 at API prices. The author argues the harness shapes results as much as the model, though the comparisons cited mix both variables and do not isolate the harness.

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