AI is already part of Linux's plumbing - whether developers like it or not

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ZDNET's key takeaways

• Linux kernel developers are using AI to support project maintenance.
• Writing kernel code with AI remains an open question.
• Copyright and open-source licensing concerns still loom.

The Linux developer community has rapidly shifted from debating how to use AI to quietly embedding it deeply into the Linux kernel engineering workflows. Indeed, Linus Torvalds now describes himself as "a huge believer" in AI as a maintenance tool.

At the same time, kernel developers meeting in Tokyo for Open Source Summit (OSS) Japan, Linux Kernel Maintainer Summit, and Linux Plumbers were formalizing how large language models (LLMs) will fit into long-term processes such as stable backporting, Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) triage, and tooling policy.

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