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Simon Willison (@simonwillison.net): Somewhat humbling to have Claude Fable do a final review of some software that you're about to release and have it then find (and fix) FIVE release blockers, for an estimated (unsubsidized) cost of $1

L3 · BuilderTools & Products@simonwillison.net· 7/5/2026

Shows practical, low-cost use of AI coding agents for real-world software quality assurance before major releases.

AI Summary

Developer Simon Willison used Claude Fable (a coding agent) to conduct a final review of sqlite-utils 4.0rc2 before release, where the AI identified and fixed five release-blocking bugs, including a serious data loss bug in transaction handling. The entire review and fix process cost an estimated $1 in unsubsidized API usage. This case demonstrates how AI coding agents can be used for comprehensive pre-release quality assurance at minimal cost.

Excerpt

Somewhat humbling to have Claude Fable do a final review of some software that you're about to release and have it then find (and fix) FIVE release blockers, for an estimated (unsubsidized) cost of $149.25 simonwillison.net/2026/Jul/5/s...

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