DO NOT Use AI in PLCs Until You See This!

AI is a helper for PLC code, not a programmer and never a safety system. Here are the 22 rules I follow every time I let AI near a PLC — plus the golden rule. ⚡ QUICK ANSWER AI is a genuinely useful helper when you are writing PLC code, but it is a helper, not a programmer, and definitely not a safety system. Used well it saves you time and teaches you a lot; used carelessly it will eventually bite you. Never let AI-generated logic control a real output until you have verified it yourself, with the field wiring disconnected. AI does not know your safety requirements, and true safety functions belong in safety-rated hardware. You are the programmer of record, you never paste AI logic into a running machine, and you assume it can be confidently wrong. Above all, the golden rule: if you cannot explain what a rung does, do not download it to a PLC. The full 22 rules are in the pinned comment and the written guide below. 🛑 SAFETY COMES FIRST (rules 1 to 4) Verify AI logic yourself before it controls a real output. AI does not know your safety requirements — E-stops, safety relays, light curtains and interlocks are your responsibility. True safety functions belong in safety-rated hardware, not the PLC or the AI. You decide the fail-safe design. 🤖 ASSISTANT, NOT AUTHORITY (5 to 8) You are the programmer of record. Never paste AI logic into a running machine. Make the AI explain its logic in plain English and check it. Assume it can be confidently wrong — invented instructions, wrong addressing, logic that fails on the first edge case. 📝 GIVE IT GOOD INFORMATION (9 to 12) Tell it your exact PLC and language. Describe every input and output, the wiring, and the sequence. Work in small pieces, one rung at a time. State your constraints upfront. 🔍 VERIFY BEFORE IT RUNS (13 to 16) Cross-check every instruction and address against the manual. Prove the concept in a free online ladder simulator first, then test with outputs isolated. Test the edge cases. Watch for logic races, missing seal-ins, and one-shots that fire twice. 🔒 PROTECT YOUR DATA (17 to 18) Do not paste proprietary code, passwords, IP addresses or plant details into public AI. Check your company's AI policy first.