How a 1970s Aerospace Writing Standard Can Fix AI Agent Jargon

AI coding agents like Claude Code often produce overly dramatic, metaphor-heavy language that obscures straightforward technical information, making outputs harder to act on. The root cause lies in how large language models are trained: reinforcement learning from human feedback tends to reward verbose, authoritative-sounding responses over plain, direct ones. A practical fix involves applying Simplified Technical English (STE), an aerospace writing standard developed in the 1970s to eliminate ambiguity in maintenance manuals. STE restricts vocabulary and grammatical complexity, enforcing a one-word-one-meaning principle that pushes AI responses toward literal, specific statements. Developers can implement STE rules directly in system configuration files such as .claudemd or global AI memory settings to make the change persistent.