COSMIC Desktop Environment Bans AI Code Submissions
Open-source developers behind the COSMIC desktop environment, utilized by the Pop!_OS Linux distribution, have implemented strict new rules completely prohibiting code and content generated by large language models. The project maintainers instituted the ban after facing a surge of unconsidered and low-quality pull requests that consumed significant time and resources.
Under the updated contribution guidelines, anyone seeking to submit code to the COSMIC project must confirm several points before their work enters review. Programmers must attest that their pull requests contain no AI-generated code, comments, or descriptions. Contributors must also verify that they fully understand the changes made, can answer code reviewer questions, and have personally tested the proposed solution in practice.
System76 Explains the Pull Request Burden
Jeremy Soller of System76 explained that while AI tools have enabled many newcomers to participate in open-source projects for the first time, those submissions are most often unplanned, low-quality, and rarely accepted. This dynamic creates a disproportionate burden on project maintainers who must spend valuable time reviewing and rejecting dozens of pointless patches.
Other major software ecosystems face similar influxes of generative content. The Linux kernel development community and the Ubuntu team are currently dealing with waves of AI-generated content. Unlike Linux and Ubuntu, which still permit AI-generated code if it meets high quality standards, System76 adopted a more restrictive policy by banning generative submissions outright. However, analytical uses of AI tools, such as bug hunting, remain permitted within the project.
System76 bans AI code submissions for COSMIC
Why did System76 ban AI code submissions for COSMIC?
Project maintainers were overwhelmed by a heavy volume of low-quality pull requests generated by large language models, which wasted valuable review time and engineering resources.
Are developers allowed to use AI tools for any tasks on COSMIC?
Yes. Contributors can still use AI tools for analytical purposes like searching for bugs, provided the submitted code and descriptions are written by humans.
How does System76 enforce the new contribution rules?
Contributors must manually check and confirm several compliance points before submitting changes, certifying that they understand the code, tested it themselves, and wrote it without generative AI assistance.