Neuronal networks in the nervous system play a central role in various behaviors essential for living organisms, such as movement, breathing, posture, and balance. Synaptic connections between different types of neurons during development form the basic architecture of neural networks that facilitate vital functions. The spinal cord contains a balanced number of excitatory (Glutamatergic) and inhibitory (GABAergic) neurons that connect to each other to create neural networks. Studies to date have investigated transcription factor (TF) networks that are expressed and function throughout central nervous system (CNS) development to identify and guide the development of diverse populations of neurons in the spinal cord. The balance between inhibitory and excitatory neurons in the dorsal spinal cord is established early in development in a process dominated by the interplay between basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcriptional activators and a PRDM repressor PRDM13. The bHLH TFs, ASCL1 and PTF1A, initiate excitatory and inhibitory neuron gene expression programs, respectively, while PRDM13 is necessary to silence alternative cell fates. The central premise is that bHLH and PRDM factors sit poised at critical fate choice points in multiple lineages throughout the embryo, including those generating neuronal diversity. Although substantial progress has been made in identifying these factors and their functions in neuronal sub-type specification, the mechanisms how regulate specific gene programs are not yet clear. Uncovering these mechanisms will shed light on future research on the solution of disorder in the development of the nervous system and the treatment of clinical problems resulting from developmental anomalies.