How AI Chatbots Helped Me Improve at LeetCode Without Giving Me the Answers

When I started practicing Leetcode again after a year of experience in Web development, I knew I’d need some help. Reluctant to take help from AI chatbots, I kept moving back and forth to chatbots every time my submission failed. This kept me wondering if I can solve these problems on my own or if I have lost my potential after coding every day alongside AI chatbots at work for all these days. Until I realized why we started coding with chatbots in the first place — to learn better. After I solved a problem on my own and put the code through a chatbot, I found more ways to approach the problem. I could see why my code has a longer runtime than another solution. I could analyze my own solution deeply and improve my ways gradually. Like, I solved a problem on Array Wrapper with a traditional approach with 49ms of runtime. After analyzing the solution with AI I learned that the same problem can be solved with an Arrow function implementation, which reduces the runtime to 32ms. One can say that you can find hundreds of solutions online, but it’s not about solutions on platforms like Leetcode; it’s about the skill to solve problems better. AI can help analyze solutions in depth and improve the approach altogether in the long run. I have one rule when solving problems: don’t ask AI for solutions. Because every problem out there on these platforms is solved already. What I am doing is polishing my problem-solving and coding skills. I ask for bits and pieces when I get stuck, but to put everything together into an actual solution is always my job. And after solving each problem, I ask AI to analyze or improve my solution. This keeps me confident in my own capabilities and helps me learn better with AI — because Leetcode isn’t about finding solutions, but about developing the skill to solve problems.

May 17, 2025 - 14:50

How AI Chatbots Helped Me Improve at LeetCode Without Giving Me the Answers

When I started practicing Leetcode again after a year of experience in Web development, I knew I’d need some help.

Reluctant to take help from AI chatbots, I kept moving back and forth to chatbots every time my submission failed.
This kept me wondering if I can solve these problems on my own or if I have lost my potential after coding every day alongside AI chatbots at work for all these days.

Until I realized why we started coding with chatbots in the first place — to learn better.

After I solved a problem on my own and put the code through a chatbot, I found more ways to approach the problem.
I could see why my code has a longer runtime than another solution.
I could analyze my own solution deeply and improve my ways gradually.

Like, I solved a problem on Array Wrapper with a traditional approach with 49ms of runtime. After analyzing the solution with AI I learned that the same problem can be solved with an Arrow function implementation, which reduces the runtime to 32ms.

One can say that you can find hundreds of solutions online, but it’s not about solutions on platforms like Leetcode; it’s about the skill to solve problems better.
AI can help analyze solutions in depth and improve the approach altogether in the long run.

I have one rule when solving problems: don’t ask AI for solutions.
Because every problem out there on these platforms is solved already. What I am doing is polishing my problem-solving and coding skills.

I ask for bits and pieces when I get stuck, but to put everything together into an actual solution is always my job.
And after solving each problem, I ask AI to analyze or improve my solution.

This keeps me confident in my own capabilities and helps me learn better with AI — because Leetcode isn’t about finding solutions, but about developing the skill to solve problems.