AI & Machine Learning
Business Insiderabout 2 hours ago
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Don't like AI? Linux's creator says go fork yourself

AI

Linus Torvalds dismisses calls to limit AI in Linux development, calling it a useful tool and telling critics to 'fork themselves.'

Don't like AI? Linux's creator says go fork yourself

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The Big Picture
Linus Torvalds, creator of Linux, pushed back against developers who want to restrict AI use in the open-source project. In a mailing list post, he argued that AI is a tool that has proven valuable for writing code and finding bugs, and that decisions should be based on technical merit, not fear. He acknowledged AI can be embarrassing for human developers but said ignoring it is not the solution. The debate reflects broader resistance to AI among some engineers, even as it becomes more capable.
Why It Matters
Linus Torvalds' stance signals that AI adoption in open-source development is inevitable, forcing developers to adapt or risk irrelevance. His dismissal of anti-AI sentiment as 'fear of new tools' underscores a growing tension between tradition and innovation in software engineering, with Linux's massive influence likely setting a precedent for other projects.

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Linus Torvalds, creator of the Linux open-source software system.
Linus Torvalds, creator of the Linux open-source software system.
Linus Torvalds, creator of the Linux open-source software system.

Steve Russell/Toronto Star via Getty Images

I always assumed software engineers were naturally curious people who couldn't wait to try the latest technology. Lately, I'm realizing that's not always true.

I recently asked a developer friend whether she'd tried Claude Code or Codex, even for a few minutes over a weekend.

"Nope," she said proudly. This is a highly educated, experienced software engineer who works on big long-term projects.

Some techies, it turns out, are just as resistant to change as everyone else.

It's not just her. This is happening inside one of the most important software projects on earth.

Linux is the operating system that powers much of the internet, from cloud computing to smartphones and countless business systems.

It's also a huge open-source project, built by thousands of volunteers. Some of these developers want limits on using AI to write and review code.

Linus Torvalds, the creator of Linux, shut that down hard recently. AI, he argued, is simply another tool, which has gotten very good at writing and checking code and finding software bugs.

If folks don't want to use AI, they can go fork themselves, Torvalds quipped. (I'm here for the open-source dad jokes. A fork is when someone copies an existing piece of software and starts developing it separately as their own version).

"This is NOT some kind of 'social warrior' project, never has been, and never will be," Torvalds wrote on a Linux mailing list. "We make decisions primarily based on technical merit. Not fear of new tools."

A year ago, it was unclear whether AI would be this useful, but that's no longer in question, he said.

Torvalds admitted that AI can be "painful" to use sometimes, partly because it keeps finding bugs in software code written by humans, which can be embarrassing for software engineers.

"But the solution is not to put your head in the sand and sing 'La La
La, I can't hear you' at the top of your voice like some people seem
to do," he wrote.

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