Re: [PATCH 0/4] Add agent coding assistant configuration to Linux kernel

[Lorenzo Stoakes <lorenzo.stoakes@oracle.com>]

+cc Linus

On Sun, Jul 27, 2025 at 03:57:58PM -0400, Sasha Levin wrote:
> This patch series adds unified configuration and documentation for coding
> agents working with the Linux kernel codebase. As coding agents
> become increasingly common in software development, it's important to
> establish clear guidelines for their use in kernel development.

Hi Sasha,

I feel like we need to take a step back here and consider some of the
non-technical consqeuences of this change.

Firstly, there is no doubt whatsoever that, were this series to land, there
would be significant press which would amount to (whether you like it or
not) 'Linux kernel welcomes AI patches'.

I don't feel that a change of this magnitude which is likely to have this
kind of impact should be RFC'd quietly and then, after a weekend, submitted
ready to merge.

This change, whether you like it or not - amounts to (or at the very least,
certainly will be perceived to be) kernel policy. And, AFAIK, we don't have
an AI kernel policy doc yet.

So to me:

- We should establish an official kernel AI policy document.

- This should be discussed at the maintainers summit before proceeding.

In addition, it's concerning that we're explicitly adding configs for
specific, commercial, products. This might be seen as an endorsement
whether intended or not.

Thanks, Lorenzo

>
> The series consists of four patches:
>
> 1. The first patch adds unified configuration files for various coding
> agents (Claude, GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Codeium, Continue,
> Windsurf, and Aider). These are all symlinked to a central documentation
> file to ensure consistency across tools.
>
> 2. The second patch adds core development references that guide
> agents to essential kernel development documentation including how
> to do kernel development, submitting patches, and the submission
> checklist.
>
> 3. The third patch adds coding style documentation and explicit rules
> that agents must follow, including the 80 character line limit
> and no trailing whitespace requirements.
>
> 4. The fourth patch adds legal requirements and agent attribution
> guidelines. All agents are required to identify themselves in
> commits using Co-developed-by tags, ensuring full transparency about
> agent involvement in code development.
>
> Example agent attribution in commits:
>
>     Co-developed-by: Claude claude-opus-4-20250514
>
>
> Changes since RFC:
> - Switch from markdown to RST
> - Break up into multiple files
> - Simplify instructions (we can always bikeshed those later)
> - AI => Agents
>
> Sasha Levin (4):
>   agents: add unified agent coding assistant configuration
>   agents: add core development references
>   agents: add coding style documentation and rules
>   agents: add legal requirements and agent attribution guidelines
>
>  .aider.conf.yml                       |  1 +
>  .codeium/instructions.md              |  1 +
>  .continue/context.md                  |  1 +
>  .cursorrules                          |  1 +
>  .github/copilot-instructions.md       |  1 +
>  .windsurfrules                        |  1 +
>  CLAUDE.md                             |  1 +
>  Documentation/agents/coding-style.rst | 35 ++++++++++++++++++++++
>  Documentation/agents/core.rst         | 28 ++++++++++++++++++
>  Documentation/agents/index.rst        | 13 +++++++++
>  Documentation/agents/legal.rst        | 42 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>  Documentation/agents/main.rst         | 22 ++++++++++++++
>  12 files changed, 147 insertions(+)
>  create mode 120000 .aider.conf.yml
>  create mode 120000 .codeium/instructions.md
>  create mode 120000 .continue/context.md
>  create mode 120000 .cursorrules
>  create mode 120000 .github/copilot-instructions.md
>  create mode 120000 .windsurfrules
>  create mode 120000 CLAUDE.md
>  create mode 100644 Documentation/agents/coding-style.rst
>  create mode 100644 Documentation/agents/core.rst
>  create mode 100644 Documentation/agents/index.rst
>  create mode 100644 Documentation/agents/legal.rst
>  create mode 100644 Documentation/agents/main.rst
>
> --
> 2.39.5
>
>