A Conversation on Claude Code: Revolutionizing the Way We Code

In today's fast-paced software development world, staying productive and efficient is key. Recently, Anthropic's Boris Cherny, the creator of Claude Code, and Alex Albert, who leads cloud relations, shared fascinating insights about Claude Code—a powerful agentic coding tool that started as an internal resource at Anthropic and has now been released to the broader developer community. This blog dives into their conversation, exploring what Claude Code is, how it works, who it's for, and why it’s set to change the way we program forever.

🤖 What Is Claude Code and How Did It Come About?

Boris Cherny describes Claude Code as a tool that brings “agentic coding” right to your terminal. The idea is to eliminate the need for adopting new IDEs or navigating complicated websites. Instead, it works wherever you work—whether that’s iTerm2, Apple Terminal, or even a terminal inside an IDE like Visual Studio Code.

The motivation behind building Claude Code was simple yet profound: Anthropic engineers and researchers use a diverse array of development stacks. Some swear by Vim, others use more modern IDEs, and some prefer niche setups. Boris explains, “We wanted to build something that works for everyone, and that’s how we kinda ended up in the terminal.” The terminal, being the most universal and flexible interface, allowed them to create a tool that integrates seamlessly into existing workflows without forcing users to learn new environments.

Alex adds that the simplicity of the terminal interface also allows for rapid iteration and improvements. What began as an internal productivity booster quickly became a potential game-changer once they realized how well it worked across various setups.

🚀 Getting Started With Claude Code: Easy as Typing 'cloud'

If you're a developer curious about trying Claude Code, the onboarding process is refreshingly straightforward. Boris walks through the installation:

1. Make sure you have Node.js installed on your system.
2. Run the command: npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code.
3. Type cloud in your terminal and hit enter.

After this, Claude Code will guide you through the rest of the setup. No complicated configurations or new tools to learn—just a smooth experience designed to get you coding faster.

One standout feature is the tool’s versatility in terms of terminal environments. Whether you prefer your regular terminal, an IDE terminal, or even remote SSH sessions, Claude Code fits right in. Boris points out that using Claude Code inside an IDE terminal enhances the experience by showing file edits more visually and tapping into IDE signals to boost intelligence.

🔥 Community Reaction and Adoption: From Internal Tool to Public Favorite

Claude Code was officially released in February, and the response has been “insane,” according to Boris. Initially, the Anthropic team was hesitant about releasing it publicly. After all, it was their internal “secret sauce,” powering the productivity of engineers and researchers alike.

Boris: “We were having this debate—are we sure we want to give it to people? Because this is the same tool everyone at Anthropic uses every day.”

However, after seeing the tool’s rapid adoption internally—with daily active users among Anthropic employees skyrocketing—the decision became clear. External users also provided overwhelmingly positive feedback, reinforcing that Claude Code was ready for the broader developer community.

Alex notes that the tool’s development philosophy is deeply rooted in “dogfooding”—using the product to build itself. Almost all of Claude Code has been written and refined using Claude Code, which translates into a polished, user-centric experience.

👩‍💻 Who Is the Ideal Claude Code User?

Claude Code is powerful, but it comes with a cost. Boris mentions that while casual users can try it out for a small fee, serious usage—especially in enterprise environments—may require a subscription ranging from $50 to $200 per month. This pricing reflects its value in handling large, complex codebases without any indexing or setup overhead.

The tool shines in large organizations, where it can seamlessly integrate with extensive codebases across multiple languages. There's no need for lengthy setup or indexing steps, making it an attractive solution for companies aiming to boost developer productivity at scale.

⚙️ The Claude Code Experience: Agentic Coding in Action

Claude Code introduces a new paradigm to programming. Unlike traditional code completion tools that predict a few lines of code, Claude Code operates as an “agent” that can:

• Understand your query in-depth.
• Use built-in tools such as bash commands and file editing to explore your codebase.
• Make complex changes and orchestrate multiple steps autonomously.

Boris shares a compelling perspective on how programming has evolved—from his grandfather’s days programming with punch cards in the 1940s Soviet Union, to today’s modern languages and IDEs, and now to agentic coding powered by AI models. This evolution reflects a shift from manual, low-level coding to high-level orchestration of intelligent agents that can write, test, and refactor code on your behalf.

⚡ Powered by Claude 4: Unlocking New Capabilities

Initially, Claude Code was powered by the Claude 3.7 Sonnet model. Recently, the upgrade to Claude 4 has unlocked significant improvements. According to Boris, Claude 4 understands instructions more precisely and can often “one-shot” complex tasks—meaning it gets things right on the first try without needing multiple corrections.

This enhancement is especially noticeable in tasks like writing unit tests, where Boris admits he hasn’t written a test in months because Claude Code handles it perfectly every time.

Moreover, Claude Code now integrates with GitHub Actions, allowing developers to invoke Claude directly within GitHub issues or pull requests. This means you can tag Claude to fix bugs or write tests asynchronously in the background, with results delivered as new pull requests.

Boris: “It’s the beginning of interacting with a model like you would with a fellow programmer.”

🔄 Changing the Way We Engineer Software

The rise of agentic coding tools like Claude Code signals a fundamental shift in software engineering. Boris highlights the mental shift developers need to embrace—from handwriting every line of code to orchestrating intelligent agents that generate code for you.

This transition demands a new mindset where reviewing and guiding code becomes more important than typing it out manually. While some complex tasks may still require hand-coding, the trend is clear: AI-powered agents will increasingly handle routine and even sophisticated programming work.

🛠️ Real-World Workflows with Claude Code

Boris shares a glimpse into his daily workflow with Claude Code:

• For simple tasks like bug fixes or writing tests, he uses Claude directly in GitHub issues, letting the agent handle the work asynchronously.
• For more involved projects, he runs multiple instances of Claude in parallel terminal tabs, each working on different codebase checkouts.
• When tasks require more precision or get stuck, he jumps into the IDE terminal, interacts with Claude, and makes manual edits as needed.

This flexible approach allows Boris to balance full automation with hands-on control, depending on the complexity of the task.

💡 Tips and Tricks for Getting the Most Out of Claude Code

Power users have discovered several strategies to maximize Claude Code’s effectiveness:

1. Ask Claude to Plan Before Coding

Instead of diving straight into writing code, have Claude brainstorm and outline multiple approaches first. For example:

“Before you code, brainstorm some ideas and make me a list of options. Don’t write any code yet.”

This helps align expectations and ensures Claude understands the problem before implementing a solution.

2. Use Extended Thinking

Claude can pause, think, and analyze before taking action. Boris recommends first letting Claude read relevant files, then prompting it to brainstorm and plan, and finally asking it to code. This mirrors a human developer’s thought process and leads to better results.

3. Leverage claude.md Files for Shared Instructions

Claude Code supports special markdown files called claude.md files that act as memory and instructions for the agent. These can be used to:

• Share coding style preferences and guidelines across your team.
• Specify bash commands or frequently used workflows.
• Provide architectural notes or any other contextual information Claude should know when working in a repository.

There are different types of claude.md files:

• Project-level: Placed in the root of your repository and shared with your team.
• Local: Personal instructions that you don’t share with others.
• Global: Stored in your home directory for instructions that apply across all projects.
• Nested: Located in specific folders to provide context about particular subdirectories.

Boris also mentions a handy feature where you can tell Claude to memorize specific instructions during a session by hitting the pound sign, effectively adding to its memory for better future interactions.

🌟 What’s Next for Claude Code?

Looking ahead, the Claude Code team is focused on two main directions:

1. Deeper integration with developer tools: Expanding compatibility beyond terminals and IDEs to include continuous integration systems and other environments developers use daily.
2. Making Claude more accessible in everyday workflows: Exploring ways to interact with Claude via chat apps or other interfaces, enabling quick fixes or feature additions with minimal friction.

The goal is to have Claude Code seamlessly embedded in all parts of the developer experience, making it feel natural and effortless to use.

🎯 Final Thoughts

Claude Code represents a bold step forward in the evolution of programming. By bringing agentic coding to the terminal and beyond, it empowers developers to delegate routine tasks, focus on higher-level problem solving, and collaborate with AI agents as if they were fellow programmers.

Whether you’re a solo coder, part of a large enterprise, or somewhere in between, Claude Code offers a glimpse into the future of software engineering—where prompts replace punch cards, and AI agents help you write, test, and maintain code with unprecedented speed and accuracy.

To learn more or get started with Claude Code, visit Anthropic’s official Claude Code page and check out their best practices guide at Anthropic Engineering Blog.