Key Statistics & Formulas

Data-driven engineering requires clear metrics. Clean Vibe Code provides a framework for quantifying the risks and costs of AI-assisted development.

The Efficiency Paradox

AI makes us faster at the keyboard, but slower in the lifecycle.

| Metric | Traditional | AI-Assisted (Vibe) | AI-Assisted (Clean) | |--------|-------------|-------------------|--------------------| | Build Speed | 1x | 10x 🚀 | 3x | | Review Load | Low | High 🔴 | Medium | | Comprehension | High | Low 🔴 | High | | Sustainability | High | Low 🔴 | High |

The Speed Trap Equation

Velocity ≠ Speed.
Velocity = Speed - (Debt Accumulation Rate / Comprehension Velocity)

When debt accumulation exceeds your ability to understand it, your velocity eventually drops to zero (Technical Bankruptcy).

Global Benchmarks

These statistics are derived from multiple studies (2024-2026) cited in the book.

45-46%
of AI code contains security vulnerabilities
Source: Source 4
72%
of professional devs avoid Vibe Coding for production
Source: Source 17
3-5x
longer to understand AI-generated codebases
Source: Source 12

The Cost of Failure

  • $45,000 - $52,000: The average cost to rebuild a defective AI-generated MVP.
  • $250,000: Typical remediation cost for a 10,000-line Vibe-Coded project before Series A.
  • 16.3%: Drop in entry-level developer job postings since the launch of ChatGPT.

The Debt Formulas

Clean Vibe Code uses these formulas to help teams manage their project health.

1. Total Debt Load (TDL)

Calculated from your Debt Ledger.

TDL = Σ (Severity Units × Number of Items)

Thresholds:

  • < 20 Units: Healthy (Conscious Debt)
  • 20-50 Units: Warning (Concerning Accumulation)
  • 50-100 Units: Risk (Approaching Bankruptcy)
  • > 100 Units: Crisis (Remediation Required)

2. The Maintenance Multiplier

Multiplier = Time to Refactor AI Code / Time to Write Human Code

In Vibe-Coded projects, this multiplier is often 3x to 5x, meaning every hour saved during generation costs 5 hours during the maintenance phase.

3. Effective Bus Factor

Bus Factor = Number of humans who can explain ALL core logic

In many AI-heavy projects, the Effective Bus Factor is less than 1, because no single human understands the entire "Magic Black Box."

IP Ownership Standards

Under the US Copyright Office standard of Substantial Creative Contribution:

| AI Contribution | Human Contribution | Result | |-----------------|--------------------|--------| | 100% (Single Prompt) | Review only | Public Domain (No IP) | | 80% (Vibe Iteration) | Minor edits | Unprotected (High Risk) | | 50% (Supervised) | Design + Refactor | Copyrightable (Clean Vibe) |

All data based on empirical research available in the Sources directory.