Linus Torvalds says AI tools have lowered the barrier to kernel patch writing, causing a 20% uptick in commits but straining the security bug-reporting process

At the 2026 Open Source Summit North America on May 20, Torvalds told Dirk Hohndel that the Linux kernel has seen about 20% more commits for the past two kernel releases than it had seen for many years, a change driven by improved AI tooling that makes it easier for people to write kernel patches.

The flood of AI-generated bug reports has made the kernel security mailing list 'almost entirely unmanageable,' prompting Willy Tarreau to update the security bugs documentation to clarify the definition and handling of security-related bug reports.

Torvalds expressed a 'love-hate relationship' with AI tools, saying he finds them useful but that they are forcing developers out of their comfort zone and creating social challenges around responsible disclosure—particularly when security researchers seek attention by branding vulnerabilities before coordinating with maintainers.