We’re Underestimating the Magic: Thoughts on Lovable, Bolt.new, and the Future of AI-Powered Builders

We’re Underestimating the Magic
An honest take on Lovable, Bolt.new, and the wild moment we’re in.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been playing around with tools like Lovable and Bolt.new. I won’t pretend I’m deep into either one, but I’ve spent enough time with them to say this with total conviction:

These tools are f'ing cool.
Like, sci-fi level cool.

It's like we're asking Cortana to take over the keyboard to ship a startup MVP like NOW (hopefully there are some Halo nerds out there).

You give them a vague idea, click through a couple prompts, and boom — out comes a functioning UI – most of the time. Sometimes even with workflows and data built in. It’s actual wizardry. And somehow… we’re already bored of it.

Enter: Capability Fatigue

That boredom? That sense of “meh” in the face of something objectively magical? That’s what I call capability fatigue.

We’ve reached this weird moment where AI tools have gotten so good, so fast, that we’ve already stopped being impressed. Instead of appreciating the insane leap forward, we’re focused on what they don’t do yet.

Where’s the Stripe integration?
Why can’t it handle auth properly?
Why didn’t it build the entire backend for me?

Two years ago, the idea of prompting your way to a working prototype would’ve melted your brain. Today, we shrug because it doesn’t ship a production-ready SaaS in 30 seconds.

My Experience Using These Tools

I hit that wall myself.

When I sat down to build a simple app idea, I was genuinely excited. The flow felt smooth. The interface looked great. But then came authentication — and everything broke.

The AI got stuck. No matter how I reworded the prompt or restructured the flow, it would loop through the same half-baked solution over and over again. It felt like it almost got it, but not quite. And when I tried to fix it manually, I quickly hit limitations on what I could control or override as a "less-technical" person.

This happened a few times in different contexts. Each time, I got something shiny — but fragile. A cool demo, not a usable app.

That’s when the reality hit me:
These tools are incredible — but they’re not built for complexity. Not yet.

Let’s Be Clear Though

Just because I ran into issues doesn’t mean I’m dismissing these tools. Far from it.

They absolutely serve a purpose — and a damn important one. If your goal is to:
✅ Prototype an idea
✅ Visualize a feature
✅ Pitch a concept
✅ Explore a product direction

Then yes, tools like Lovable and Bolt.new are exactly what you need. They are fast, creative, and full of potential. You can go from napkin sketch to interactive demo in the same afternoon. That used to take weeks.

But if your goal is to:
❌ Build something robust
❌ Handle edge cases
❌ Ship production-ready software

…then you’re going to hit walls. Fast.

Sure, there are exceptions. Someone out there has probably shipped something meaningful with one of these tools. But that’s the outlier — not the baseline. Most of the time, once you need logic, state, workflows, or just reliable control, these tools start to show their limits.

Control Is the Unlock

Here’s the truth: if you’re non-technical but serious about building, what you need isn’t just a faster path — it’s a smarter one.
One that gives you control over what you’re creating.
Where you can set conditions, structure data, build logic, and actually own the way your product behaves.

That’s the tradeoff right now.
Yes, there’s a bit of a learning curve.
Yes, it’s not as “just type and go” as some of the newer tools.
But the payoff? You get to build real things. Not just prototypes.

Platforms like Bubble.io aren’t perfect — but they let you build something that holds up. And if we’re serious about empowering non-technical people to create real software, its these types of tools you will be shipping products from.

So yes — I’ll keep playing with Lovable and Bolt.new.
Because seeing your idea turn into a real interface in ten minutes is still absolute magic.

But when you’re ready to build something that lasts — something with depth, logic, and staying power — go where you have the most control.

That’s the real unlock.

PS. we probably don't have to wait long for these tools to overcome all of my objections.