My Agents Never Get Tired. I Do: On Satisficing

In a reflective piece on the intersection of human limitations and AI-driven development, the author explores the concept of 'satisficing'—a strategy of stopping at 'good enough' to avoid the diminishing returns of over-engineering. Utilizing AI agents like Kiro and Claude, the author notes that while these tools can work tirelessly to refine code and documentation, they lack the human sense of project scope and fatigue. This leads to the risk of over-engineering even simple tasks. To combat this, the author proposes implementing 'rigor budgets'—defining specific tiers of work quality—and creating 'wind-down' plans at the start of projects to establish clear endpoints. By shifting the burden of decision-making from willpower to structured, pre-defined constraints, the author aims to manage the relentless speed of AI-assisted development while maintaining a sustainable pace in their professional work in civic technology.