GitHub Copilot: How to Use AI Without Letting It Write for You

AI coding assistants are changing how we work, but relying on them too much can hurt your growth as a developer. Copilot is powerful, but only if you know how to stay in the driver’s seat.

October 16, 2025

In partnership with

New at hackr.io

This week we’re breaking down how to get the most out of GitHub Copilot, and how to make AI your ally, not your crutch.

Partner Message

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The Scoop

3 Ways to Use Copilot Without Losing Control

Or learn the skills you need to work in the industry with these AI courses.

Write Smarter, Not Lazier
Let Copilot handle boilerplate and repetitive syntax, but always review suggestions. Treat it like pair programming, not autopilot.

Learn Its Prompts and Limits
Copilot improves as you guide it. Comment your intent clearly. Use natural language prompts, then edit its output for efficiency and accuracy.

Use AI as a Reviewer, Not a Replacement
Generate code, but verify it. Ask Copilot for explanations and optimizations, then compare with your own approach. It can teach patterns, but you stay the architect.

Skills

AI Tools Every Developer Should Learn in 2025

GitHub Copilot is not the only option. Explore these tools that work seamlessly with your workflow:

  • Tabnine for privacy-conscious teams

  • Codeium a free, fast alternative for open source projects

  • Lintly + Copilot automated code reviews with AI context

  • Kite smart completions for Python and JavaScript

The best developers of 2025 will not compete with AI. They will direct it. Learn to use these tools to write cleaner, faster, and smarter code.

That’s it for today.

Thanks for being part of the Hackr.io community. Keep learning. Keep experimenting. And keep your hands on the keyboard.

The Hackr.io Team

P.S.

New to AI coding tools? Start with our beginner-friendly Copilot tutorial to learn prompt strategies that actually work.