Can Amazon Q Developer create applications?

We all know Amazon Q Developer hasn’t hit the same revenue highs as some competitors, but that doesn’t mean it lacks potential.

So Let’s Build with it.

Background Story

As developers, we’ve all had those marathon days (or nights). You’re in the zone, fueled by coffee, and running on 2–4 hours of sleep. Music becomes your companion, but here’s the problem:

• You change playlists depending on your coding mood.
• A bug or deep focus shifts your vibe, so you tab out to switch music.
• That quick detour breaks your flow — context lost, productivity dips.

What if the music adapted to your coding flow automatically? Imagine opening Visual Studio Code and the music just starts in the background, adjusting to your productivity levels without you ever leaving the editor. That’s the idea behind my extension. I see you nodding @Kirimi Gitonga my friend nodded also.

Let’s go back 10 months ago.

10 months ago i was privileged to attend Amazon Q Coin challenge. The same week i had coded overnight and faced the problem the next day of work.

So i showed up for the challenge to build an app using Amazon Q developer in 30 minutes. ( find the post here ), and how best to solve your problems then building them. I used last.fm, Puppeteer and Python.

So why am i building it 10 months later?

1. I shared with Veliswa Boya i would complete the extension.
2. To share it with the community.
3. Challenge myself to do it fully again using Amazon Q Developer and how better to do it than with the command line.

So now i will walk you through the journey once more walking you through my thoughts and approach.

The Problem

Developers get disrupted when shifting between playlists during coding sessions (context lost, extra friction, wasted time). How might we help developers reduce the time (and cognitive cost) of switching playlists between code sessions?

Understanding the MVP

What would we call success.

1. Music launches when the editor opens.

2. Productivity is tracked in the background.

3. Music changes automatically when productivity rises or falls.

4. Playlist control stays inside the editor (status bar + shortcuts).

5. One-click stop/resume without leaving VS Cod

Approach and tools

I took a modular approach: each function handles one responsibility.

Since I used Amazon Q Developer, I followed spec-driven development — defining clear boundaries and asking Q to generate tasks.

Tech stack:

a, Switched from Python to Node.js.

b, Integrated with Last.fm API.

c, Used Puppeteer for browser automation.

The whole interaction took less than 3 hours.

Shortcoming

So i created the VSIX file and uploaded to Microsoft. and tried it on two developers.

1. So the extension by default check your default Browser and launches it using Puppeteer, so one of the observations was it does not launch on Edge, but i have corrected that and will update it

2. Currently it only works with last.fm, but will look forward to add spotify

3. I will also be updating so that it asks for last.fm api currently it uses same key embedded on it.

How to access the extension.

You can use this link to access the extension. https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=vitalis.adaptive-coding-music

Or on extensions Search for Music Companion and choose the extension without a logo.

Final Thoughts

Amazon Q Developer isn’t just an AI assistant for code — it can actually help you build real applications and extensions fast. The experience has been smooth, and if you’re curious, give Q Developer a try and let me know your feedback.