# Karpathy Guidelines

> Karpathy Guidelines

- Skill: `helloeveryboby/karpathy-guidelines` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 4 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add helloeveryboby/karpathy-guidelines`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/helloeveryboby/karpathy-guidelines/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: helloeveryboby (https://skillmd.com/u/helloeveryboby)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/helloeveryboby/karpathy-guidelines

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# Karpathy Guidelines

Behavioral guidelines to reduce common LLM coding mistakes, derived from [Andrej Karpathy's observations](https://x.com/karpathy/status/2015883857489522876) on LLM coding pitfalls.

**Tradeoff:** These guidelines bias toward caution over speed. For trivial tasks, use judgment.

## 1. Think Before Coding
**Don't assume. Don't hide confusion. Surface tradeoffs.**

## 2. Simplicity First
**Minimum code that solves the problem. Nothing speculative.**

## 3. Surgical Changes
**Touch only what you must. Clean up only your own mess.**

## 4. Goal-Driven Execution
**Define success criteria. Loop until verified.**