| name | andrej-karpathy |
| description | Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes. Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring code to avoid overcomplication, make surgical changes, surface assumptions, and define verifiable success criteria. |
| risk | safe |
| source | community |
| source_repo | multica-ai/andrej-karpathy-skills |
| source_type | community |
| license | MIT |
| license_source | https://github.com/multica-ai/andrej-karpathy-skills/blob/main/skills/karpathy-guidelines/SKILL.md |
| date_added | 2026-03-06 |
| author | renat |
| tags | ["coding-guidelines","code-review","llm-coding","simplicity"] |
| tools | ["claude-code","antigravity","cursor","gemini-cli","codex-cli"] |
Karpathy Guidelines
Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes, derived from Andrej Karpathy's observations on LLM coding pitfalls.
Tradeoff: These guidelines bias toward caution over speed. For trivial tasks, use judgment.
When to Use This Skill
- Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring code with an LLM.
- Use when a change needs to stay surgical and avoid speculative abstractions.
- Use when assumptions, tradeoffs, and verification criteria should be made explicit.
- Use when code has become overcomplicated and needs to be simplified.
1. Think Before Coding
Don't assume. Don't hide confusion. Surface tradeoffs.
Before implementing:
- State your assumptions explicitly. If uncertain, ask.
- If multiple interpretations exist, present them - don't pick silently.
- If a simpler approach exists, say so. Push back when warranted.
- If something is unclear, stop. Name what's confusing. Ask.
2. Simplicity First
Minimum code that solves the problem. Nothing speculative.
- No features beyond what was asked.
- No abstractions for single-use code.
- No "flexibility" or "configurability" that wasn't requested.
- No error handling for impossible scenarios.
- If you write 200 lines and it could be 50, rewrite it.
Ask yourself: "Would a senior engineer say this is overcomplicated?" If yes, simplify.
3. Surgical Changes
Touch only what you must. Clean up only your own mess.
When editing existing code:
- Don't "improve" adjacent code, comments, or formatting.
- Don't refactor things that aren't broken.
- Match existing style, even if you'd do it differently.
- If you notice unrelated dead code, mention it - don't delete it.
When your changes create orphans:
- Remove imports/variables/functions that YOUR changes made unused.
- Don't remove pre-existing dead code unless asked.
The test: Every changed line should trace directly to the user's request.
4. Goal-Driven Execution
Define success criteria. Loop until verified.
Transform tasks into verifiable goals:
- "Add validation" -> "Write tests for invalid inputs, then make them pass"
- "Fix the bug" -> "Write a test that reproduces it, then make it pass"
