Issue 178 - How to use AI as a SHOPIFY DEVELOPER in 2025

This collection of articles and transcripts discusses various aspects of coding, particularly within the Shopify ecosystem, and the transformative impact of AI tools. **Claude Code Overview:** This document introduces Claude Code, Anthropic's AI coding assistant for terminals. It details its capabilities (editing, debugging, codebase understanding, git integration), system requirements, installation, usage (CLI commands, slash commands), security measures (permissions, prompt injection protection), configuration options, terminal optimization, cost management, and integration with third-party APIs like Amazon Bedrock and Google Vertex AI. A development container reference implementation is also provided for enhanced security and consistency. **Shopify Hidden Pages:** This transcript explains how to hide Shopify pages from search engines and Shopify's internal search using a metafield called "SEO hidden." Setting this field's integer value to 1 adds a "noindex, nofollow" meta tag. The process is demonstrated for products, pages, and collections. It clarifies that hidden items may still appear if directly referenced in other sections. **Shopify Store Ban Story (Reddit):** This summarizes a Reddit post about a Shopify store ban. Two lessons are highlighted: (1) monitor Shopify emails diligently and (2) ensure order fulfillment statuses are updated correctly, particularly when using third-party apps. The post criticizes Shopify's lack of communication with the banned store owner. **Shopify CEO on AI and Hiring:** This CNBC article reports on Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke's new hiring policy. Employees must now justify new headcount requests by demonstrating why AI tools cannot accomplish the desired tasks. Lütke emphasizes the importance of AI integration for productivity and states that AI usage will be considered in performance reviews. **MonkeysPaw Web Framework:** This Substack post introduces MonkeysPaw, a Ruby web framework using prompts as source code. Developers write descriptions, and the LLM generates pages, handles routing, manages styling, and creates JavaScript functionality. It emphasizes content-first development and the use of natural language. While acknowledging potential drawbacks like unexpected outputs and performance issues, the author views it as a paradigm shift in web development. **Cursor for Shopify Developers:** This transcript promotes the Cursor AI coding tool for Shopify developers. It details installation, features (command+K for code edits and questions, tab for intelligent suggestions, and the agent for complex tasks), and provides real-world examples of its use for various task complexities and developer knowledge levels. It also covers integrating the Shopify MCP server into Cursor for enhanced context and accuracy, concluding with five tips for effective AI tool usage. In summary, the materials explore the evolving landscape of coding with an emphasis on AI assistance and the specific challenges and opportunities within the Shopify development environment. They showcase various tools and strategies for leveraging AI, optimizing workflows, navigating app store dynamics, and building robust and scalable applications.