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Programmer Jeffrey (Geoff) Huntley has created a script that will put his colleagues out of work.
Developer Jeffrey (Geoff) Huntley has created a script that sometimes makes him feel sick. The reason is simple: this script uses artificial intelligence to create high-quality software so cheaply that Huntley seriously fears for the future of his profession.
The script itself looks extremely simple: while :; do cat PROMPT.md | claude-code ; done. Huntley describes it as "an endless loop that returns the results of the AI's work, including all errors, back to the system until it gives the correct answer." This is a method of brute force combined with perseverance. The developer named his technique "Ralph," after the 1980s slang word for vomiting and the Simpsons character Ralph Wiggum, whom he describes as a combination of ignorance, perseverance, and optimism.
Developers usually use AI assistants like playing table tennis: they send a request, receive a code, evaluate the result, send the request again, and so on until the result satisfies the person. Huntley's approach changes the rules of the game: he forces the assistant to independently evaluate his work and try again until the desired result is achieved. The person still remains in the process, but enters the game much later and less frequently.
According to Huntley, using his Claude Code method and service from Anthropic, he reproduced the functionality of commercial products. To do this, he claims, it is enough to provide the system with the source code, specifications and documentation. He created a tax application for the legendary ZX Spectrum computer, and later performed reverse engineering and reproduced one of Atlassian's products.
Huntley said that he used his technique to clone a version of open source software that a commercial company distributes under a license that does not suit him. After gaining access to the source code and translating the project into another language, he launched Ralph with Claude Code. The first results were so-so, since there were no product specifications, but when he added the company's documentation to the cycle, Claude eventually created better software.
According to the developer, AI copes with such tasks, consuming about $ 10 of computing resources or SaaS services per hour. This amount is much closer to the salary of fast food workers than to the much more substantial salaries of programmers.
Huntley even used his approach to develop a new programming language called Cursed. "It's cursed by its lexical structure, it's cursed by how it was created, cursed by the fact that it's even possible, cursed by its cheapness, and cursed by how many times I've cursed at Claude," he wrote.
The developer is concerned that the very fact of the possibility of creating Cursed may mean something more for the industry. That's why his creation sometimes makes him feel sick, and that's why in 2025 he periodically suspended work on his ideas.
But he continued to discuss them with other developers, and after a trip to Silicon Valley, he noticed significant interest in his approach, especially among startups. Huntley claims that many members of the well-known startup incubator Y Combinator are now using Ralph, and the hype around their work eventually attracted the attention of Anthropic. The company has created the Ralph Wiggum plugin for its Claude Code product. Boris Cherny, the creator of Claude Code, said that he uses Ralph himself.
Huntley believes he has stumbled upon an idea that could transform software development and possibly entire industries. In his opinion, developers should now spend more time creating loops that force AI assistants to produce better results, instead of sitting on a code review.
"Agile and planning don't make sense anymore," says Huntley. "The days when you were a monkey closing tickets in Jira are over."
He also believes that Ralph poses a serious challenge to any business. "Companies have a brand that is impossible to bend, and a reputation that cannot be copied," he said. "But the product's functions can now be cloned."
Huntley expects startups to start using Ralph to clone existing businesses, especially SaaS companies, and to dump prices because they can afford it: agent code costs $10 per hour, rather than a full staff of programmers.
And this scenario can make many, many people feel sick.
Developer Jeffrey (Geoff) Huntley has created a script that sometimes makes him feel sick. The reason is simple: this script uses artificial intelligence to create high-quality software so cheaply that Huntley seriously fears for the future of his profession.
The script itself looks extremely simple: while :; do cat PROMPT.md | claude-code ; done. Huntley describes it as "an endless loop that returns the results of the AI's work, including all errors, back to the system until it gives the correct answer." This is a method of brute force combined with perseverance. The developer named his technique "Ralph," after the 1980s slang word for vomiting and the Simpsons character Ralph Wiggum, whom he describes as a combination of ignorance, perseverance, and optimism.
Developers usually use AI assistants like playing table tennis: they send a request, receive a code, evaluate the result, send the request again, and so on until the result satisfies the person. Huntley's approach changes the rules of the game: he forces the assistant to independently evaluate his work and try again until the desired result is achieved. The person still remains in the process, but enters the game much later and less frequently.
According to Huntley, using his Claude Code method and service from Anthropic, he reproduced the functionality of commercial products. To do this, he claims, it is enough to provide the system with the source code, specifications and documentation. He created a tax application for the legendary ZX Spectrum computer, and later performed reverse engineering and reproduced one of Atlassian's products.
Huntley said that he used his technique to clone a version of open source software that a commercial company distributes under a license that does not suit him. After gaining access to the source code and translating the project into another language, he launched Ralph with Claude Code. The first results were so-so, since there were no product specifications, but when he added the company's documentation to the cycle, Claude eventually created better software.
According to the developer, AI copes with such tasks, consuming about $ 10 of computing resources or SaaS services per hour. This amount is much closer to the salary of fast food workers than to the much more substantial salaries of programmers.
Huntley even used his approach to develop a new programming language called Cursed. "It's cursed by its lexical structure, it's cursed by how it was created, cursed by the fact that it's even possible, cursed by its cheapness, and cursed by how many times I've cursed at Claude," he wrote.
The developer is concerned that the very fact of the possibility of creating Cursed may mean something more for the industry. That's why his creation sometimes makes him feel sick, and that's why in 2025 he periodically suspended work on his ideas.
But he continued to discuss them with other developers, and after a trip to Silicon Valley, he noticed significant interest in his approach, especially among startups. Huntley claims that many members of the well-known startup incubator Y Combinator are now using Ralph, and the hype around their work eventually attracted the attention of Anthropic. The company has created the Ralph Wiggum plugin for its Claude Code product. Boris Cherny, the creator of Claude Code, said that he uses Ralph himself.
Huntley believes he has stumbled upon an idea that could transform software development and possibly entire industries. In his opinion, developers should now spend more time creating loops that force AI assistants to produce better results, instead of sitting on a code review.
"Agile and planning don't make sense anymore," says Huntley. "The days when you were a monkey closing tickets in Jira are over."
He also believes that Ralph poses a serious challenge to any business. "Companies have a brand that is impossible to bend, and a reputation that cannot be copied," he said. "But the product's functions can now be cloned."
Huntley expects startups to start using Ralph to clone existing businesses, especially SaaS companies, and to dump prices because they can afford it: agent code costs $10 per hour, rather than a full staff of programmers.
And this scenario can make many, many people feel sick.
