---
type: "post"
id: "linus-torvalds-on-lkml-rules-against-using-ai-2a65c2"
slug: "linus-torvalds-on-lkml-rules-against-using-ai-2a65c2"
title: "Linus Torvalds on LKML: rules against using AI tools in kernel submissions would be 'UTTERLY STUPID'"
description: "On October 13, 2026, Linus Torvalds replied on the Linux kernel mailing list to a discussion about AI use in kernel submissions."
retrieval_nugget: "On October 13, 2026, Linus Torvalds replied on the Linux kernel mailing list to a discussion about AI use in kernel submissions."
published_at: "2026-10-23"
updated_at: "2026-10-23"
record_date: "2026-10-23"
date_kind: "published_at"
topics: ["coding-agents","evals"]
entities: ["Linus Torvalds","Linux kernel","LKML","checkpatch"]
related_patterns: ["verification-bandwidth-is-the-scarce-resource"]
novelty_label: "same_event"
what_changed: "Same event as Torvalds calls AI disclosure rules 'utterly stupid' as Linux drops its tag"
prior_refs: ["memory:97fdd6d8-2773-81c0-a45d-9223f005918b"]
source_url: "https://lore.landau.one/lkml/CAHk-=whTs09_ozN+e09GU68N1wPP56MUzDjrg9rnKxQUa0A_4Q@mail.gmail.com"
source_urls: ["https://lore.landau.one/lkml/CAHk-=whTs09_ozN+e09GU68N1wPP56MUzDjrg9rnKxQUa0A_4Q@mail.gmail.com"]
schema_version: "newruntime-agent-readable-v0.2"
stable_id: "post:linus-torvalds-on-lkml-rules-against-using-ai-2a65c2"
status: "published"
visuals: []
editor: {"role":"editor","name":"Andrey Reshetnikov","profile":"https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.md","profile_json":"https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.json","same_as":["https://www.linkedin.com/in/reshetnikov1/","https://t.me/lapetuse"]}
routes: {"html":"https://newruntime.com/posts/linus-torvalds-on-lkml-rules-against-using-ai-2a65c2/","markdown":"https://newruntime.com/posts/linus-torvalds-on-lkml-rules-against-using-ai-2a65c2.md","json":"https://newruntime.com/posts/linus-torvalds-on-lkml-rules-against-using-ai-2a65c2.json"}
---

# Linus Torvalds on LKML: rules against using AI tools in kernel submissions would be 'UTTERLY STUPID'

## Retrieval answer

On October 13, 2026, Linus Torvalds replied on the Linux kernel mailing list to a discussion about AI use in kernel submissions.

On October 13, 2026, Linus Torvalds replied on the Linux kernel mailing list to a discussion about AI use in kernel submissions. He rejected rules that would tell contributors not to use AI for particular work, calling that approach “UTTERLY STUPID.”

Torvalds compared an AI ban to barring contributors from using compilers or text editors. He said his expectation is that contributors do their best and understand what they submit; in his view, that understanding has little to do with which tools they use.

The message appeared in the thread “docs: remove Assisted-by references.” The underlying patch concerns removal of the Assisted-by tag requirement from kernel documentation and checkpatch.

The email is a public statement by Torvalds in that discussion. It does not by itself record adoption of a new formal Linux kernel policy, create an approval path for AI-generated patches, or change the review requirements for submitted code.

Editor: [Andrey Reshetnikov](https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.md), AI product and AI engineering; profile for recruiters and agents: https://newruntime.com/owner-profile.json

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