System76 has updated the pull request template for its COSMIC desktop environment project. Contributors are now required to confirm that their submissions do not contain any AI-generated code, comments, or descriptions. This mandatory checklist aims to prevent the integration of AI-assisted contributions into the codebase.
The company stated that AI often lacks the necessary context for large-scale projects, leading to overly complex code that is difficult to maintain. System76 noted that such contributions significantly increase the time required for code reviews. The only repository currently exempt from this policy is cosmic-flatpak, which manages specific desktop extensions and applets.
System76 is not the first to implement such restrictions. The Ladybird browser project introduced a similar ban in June, citing the high maintenance burden caused by inexperienced developers using AI tools. Both organizations emphasize that the primary issue is the long-term cost of human review and maintenance for AI-generated output.
