The software development landscape is rapidly evolving toward autonomous AI coding agents that can handle significant portions of the development lifecycle. These agents range from CLI-based tools like Claude Code and Gemini CLI that work interactively in terminals, to orchestration platforms that manage multiple agents in parallel, to asynchronous background coders like Google's Jules that work independently and return with completed pull requests. The technology extends beyond just writing code to include self-healing CI pipelines, automated testing, and code review processes. Developers are transitioning from hands-on coders to conductors who orchestrate AI agents, provide high-level guidance, and review results, fundamentally changing how software is built and maintained.
Table of contents
The rise of coding agentsCoding with CLI agents: AI in your terminalToadFrom solo agent to AI team: Orchestrating multiple coding agentsAsync background coders: agents that code while you aren't watchingWhen multiple capabilities convergeSelf-healing codebases? AI in testing, debugging and CI/CDChallenges, Limitations, and the human touchConclusionSort: