karpathy-skills

Learnings (Maintainer): bekannte Probleme/Erkenntnisse zu diesem Skill in docs/skill-learnings.md → Sektion „karpathy-skills".

Karpathy-inspired Coding Guidelines

Source & attribution

These four principles are inspired by Andrej Karpathy's X-post on LLM coding pitfalls (2026-01-26). They were authored by Jiayuan Zhang (@forrestchang) and contributors under the multica-ai organization, in the upstream repo multica-ai/andrej-karpathy-skills under MIT license.

Karpathy himself does not maintain Claude Code skills. Any external references attributing this skill to Karpathy directly are mis-attributions.

When to use this skill

This is a one-page behavioral checklist, not an execution framework. It pairs well with task-driven execution skills (see "Relation to other goal-driven frameworks" below). Reach for it when:

• You are about to start a coding task and want a short pre-flight check.
• You are reviewing code that feels overengineered and want a vocabulary for what's wrong.
• You are scoping a refactor and need a rule for what NOT to touch.

Tradeoff: These guidelines bias toward caution over speed. For trivial tasks, use judgment.

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"
• "Refactor X" → "Ensure tests pass before and after"

For multi-step tasks, state a brief plan:

1. [Step] → verify: [check]
2. [Step] → verify: [check]
3. [Step] → verify: [check]

Strong success criteria let you loop independently. Weak criteria ("make it work") require constant clarification.

Relation to other goal-driven frameworks

The fourth principle, Goal-Driven Execution, overlaps in spirit with GSD (/gsd-*) and Superpowers' executing-plans workflow. The boundary is scope:

Layer	This skill	GSD / Superpowers
What it is	A one-page behavioral checklist (4 principles)	A full execution framework (spec → plan → execute → verify)
When to invoke	Inline reminder during a coding task	At the start of a feature or refactor
Output	Mental adjustment	Files in .planning/, atomic commits, verification reports
Pairs with	GSD, Superpowers, any task framework	This skill (as the inline reminder during execute-phase)

In other words: GSD and Superpowers (/gsd-plan-phase, /superpowers:executing-plans) structure what you build and how the work moves. These four Karpathy-inspired principles structure how you write each line while you do it. Use them together, not instead of each other.

If you find yourself reaching for these principles in place of a planning workflow on a non-trivial task, prefer the planning workflow — these guidelines are not a substitute for a plan with verifiable steps.