r/Lightbulb • u/amichail • 2d ago
Frankensoftware: Vibe code apps that combine the best features of existing apps
What if, instead of using AI to clone existing software, we used it to vibe code hybrids of two or more applications?
For example, imagine combining Microsoft Word's familiar interface and document compatibility with GNU TeXmacs' mathematical typesetting. Or combining Photoshop with Blender, Excel with Jupyter, or VS Code with Emacs.
I propose calling these hybrids frankensoftware.
The term already exists, usually referring to software awkwardly stitched together. But I'm proposing a more specific meaning: apps deliberately vibe coded to combine the best features of existing applications into a new, unified program.
The apps wouldn't necessarily share any code. AI could recreate and integrate their functionality from scratch.
This could become a whole new category of open-source software development, making ambitious combinations practical for individuals rather than large development teams.
Some hybrids might be brilliant, others might be monsters. That's part of the appeal!
What two apps would you like to see combined?
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u/gothiclg 2d ago
I’d rather have my apps be good at one thing instead of having AI create a 3rd app that’ll do both things badly.
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u/amichail 2d ago
Advanced AIs nowadays have a lot of common sense and can make high quality decisions with respect to implementing things properly and perhaps even integrating different app functionalities together in a way that makes sense.
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u/gothiclg 2d ago
They can also mess up really badly. Until an AI can perfectly program something every time it’s a no from me.
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u/Sentient2X 2d ago
Your assumption that ai coded software is inherently bad stems from a dated understanding of it. The largest tech companies in the world use AI to code. It is genuinely good, when operated by a competent user.
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u/gothiclg 2d ago
“When operated by a competent user”….meaning a person has to monitor it to make sure it doesn’t mess up. We’d be one lazy or overworked employee away from a bad app. No thanks, give me human programming.
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u/Sentient2X 2d ago
We are already one lazy or overworked employee away from bad apps. Is this a joke?
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u/gothiclg 2d ago
We don’t need to make it worse with AI. Lazy or overworked employees can get fired or burn out and leave the company, “the AI messed up” means more of the apps get churned out. We shouldn’t be normalizing AI use.
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u/Sentient2X 2d ago
Again, your assumption that ai inherently makes things worse is outdated. I would not base my entire opinion of something modern on 2-3 year old info. Your bias against it does not matter in the real world.
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u/CarbonInTheWind 2d ago
AI coding tools can be very useful in the hands of knowledgeable software engineers who understand how the underlying systems work.
Someone with very little knowledge doesn't know what to ask for to make integrated systems that run well. That situation often ends up with a mess of code that is buggy and/or inefficient.
But the larger problem with this idea is that most useful software is owned by a company and protected by copyrights and patents. Your two examples would most likely end up with lawsuits from Microsoft and Photoshop. Surviving those lawsuits would require making the UI and underlying code different enough to not infringe on those patents. That's a lot of the reason the open source versions you're talking about merging them into are so different to begin with.
I expect a ton of lawsuits in the coming years as these AI tools become more ubiquitous.
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u/TheMoneyOfArt 2d ago
Go a step further: apps stop existing as meaningfully shared things. You have some problem, you want software to solve it. If I don't have your problem, why do I need your software? If I have 99% of your problem, maybe I'll use yours, but if I have 90% of your problem I will just build my own.
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u/HumanoidMuppet 2d ago
This is the future. As it is, no one uses 100% of excel capabilities. Most people probably are at around 5%. In the future you will just explain what you are trying to do and AI will create a UI for you. Users won't even know their creating apps - it will just be the new way to interact with computers.
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u/TheMoneyOfArt 2d ago
And think about Excel as the model, since it's the most common way for non programmers to create new software tools pre-AI. If I said I did budgeting, or event planning in Excel, you might ask for a copy of my sheet, but you'd modify it quickly, because you want something different
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u/Rusty_Tap 2d ago
I'll get started throwing my tokens at a video editing/meal planning hybrid software immediately.