Varty’s Videos: Where AI Meets Code
It's another installment of the Agility CTO's fantastically fun series – and this time, he's serving up five videos packed with insights at the intersection of AI and coding. We've got your recap.
If screen legend Eric Roberts is sometimes known as the “Busiest Actor in Hollywood” (he's racked up over 700 credits in film and TV), then Agility CMS CTO Joel Varty has a valid claim as “The Busiest Man in the CMS industry.”
Seriously. This year, Joel has released comprehensive video playlists on Next.js and composable content. Now, he’s back to complete the trilogy with this latest YouTube series, Next-Level Dev: AI Meets Code.
We've got an exclusive wrap on this new edition, and you can watch all the videos below. We've even pulled some of Joel's Oscar-worthy quotes from each installment. Just for fun.
So grab your popcorn, put away your DVD copy of Runaway Train, and prepare for a blockbuster knowledge drop.
Video 1: Building a VS Code Component from a Screenshot
This is an award-winning video. Literally.
Joel opens with his CMS Connect 25, CMS Idol-winning demo. Within the Agility headless CMS platform – and in six swift minutes – Joel shows:
- How starting in your codebase (instead of the CMS) saves time.
- The way AI assistants like Claude read your existing project patterns and build components to match.
- Why this approach makes hard-to-visualize use cases simple and fast to deliver.
Fun Joel quote: “I don’t even know what this is.”
Watch Building a VS Code Component from a Screenshot here:
Video 2: Can You Code AI with Agility CMS?
Think of this as a longer, code-first expansion of the first video.
Joel wires Agility CMS into a Next.js site, starting code-first. He covers what the AI-assisted workflow looks like and why it matters for developer efficiency and editor usability. He also breaks down:
- Reverse workflows by taking a React component and letting AI convert it into an Agility CMS component without a manual boilerplate.
- Using AI to add elements like dark mode support, consistent container spacing, and scroll-triggered effects.
- Letting AI scaffold so developers can focus on testing, code reviews, accessibility, and performance.
Fun Joel quote: “I’m going to go boom.”
Watch Can You Code AI with Agility CMS? here:
Video 3: Oops! No Dark Mode? Let’s Fix it Together
Joel shipped a hero component without dark mode.
But fear not! AI to the rescue! Joel uses an AI agent to retrofit the component properly. Not only does he cover what to change, but also why the pattern matters for consistency across the site. He also dives into:
- Aligning spacing, tones, and dark-mode behavior with existing components.
- Best practices for reviewing diffs and safely accepting changes.
- How to iterate fast and make small manual edits where needed.
Fun Joel quote: “It looks like it’s doing a bunch of stuff. Then it undid some stuff.”
Watch Oops! No Dark Mode? Let’s Fix it Together here:
Video 4: Watch Me Build a Carousel with AI, MCP, and Next.js
This is a bigger, hands-on video.
Joel installs the Agility MCP (Model Context Protocol) server, explains what MCP is, and shows how a code-first + AI approach accelerates modeling and implementation while maintaining Next.js conventions. You’ll also see:
- How to go from a simple Figma sketch to a carousel component model and item content model using AI.
- Correct Next.js routing and file naming.
- The developer’s job to craft precise AI prompts, review diffs, run tests, and enforce performance.
Fun Joel quote: “Here’s my quote, unquote design. I am not a designer.”
Watch Watch Me Build a Carousel with AI, MCP, and Next.js here:
Video 5: GitHub Copilot vs Cursor vs Claude: The Ultimate AI Coding Showdown
The last video in the series is the big, winner-take-all battle.
Joel compares GitHub Copilot, Claude Code (CLI), and Cursor by adding personalization to a Next.js background hero using Agility CMS. He also covers:
- The exact fields and list requirements for personalization.
- How this exercise was set up, executed, and validated.
- How developers ensure quality within AI scaffolding.
Who takes it? You’ll have to watch.
Fun Joel quote: “It’s not working. No, it’s not working. That did not work.”
Watch GitHub Copilot vs Cursor vs Claude: The Ultimate AI Coding Showdown here:
The Post-Credits Scene: The Repeatable Loop
Whether intended or accidental, Joel’s series showcases that AI won’t replace developers.
And maybe that’s the point.
Each episode in Joel’s series sort of reinforces the same loop:
- Developers Start: It’s dev intent, through things like prompts, that drive the work.
- AI Scaffolds: It drafts the boring parts.
- Developers Stay Accountable: For things like naming, accessibility, performance, and overall quality.
In Joel’s recap of CMS Connect 25, he pointed out that for AI experimentation, nobody has “cracked the code” on a singular, best way to do it. But in Next Level Dev: AI Meets Code, he may have found a workable formula where dev input and AI output are given equal consideration and craft.
We’ll see.
Until then, we're looking forward to the next installment of Varty’s Videos.
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