Re: Ballot option: Allow AI-Assisted Contributions

Christian Kastner <[email protected]> Thu, 23 Jul 2026 08:38:14 +0200
Newsgroups	gmane.linux.debian.devel.vote
Message-ID	<[email protected]>
On 2026-07-22 21:31, Lucas Nussbaum wrote:
> BEGIN PROPOSAL
> 
> # Allow AI-Assisted Contributions
> 
> Using its power under Constitution section 4.1 (5), the project issues the
> following statement describing its current position on AI-assisted
> contributions. This statement describes the position of the project at the
> time it is adopted. That position may evolve as time passes without the need
> to resort to future general resolutions. The GR process remains available if
> the project needs a decision and cannot come to a consensus.
> 
> The Debian project recognizes that AI-assisted contributions raise many
> concerns, e.g. about the technical quality and maintainability of such
> contributions, and their legal status. AI itself also raises additional
> concerns, about its impact on society at large, on the IT industry and on
> Free Software; about its environmental impact; and the aggressive or
> non-compliant practices of AI scrapers.
> 
> Nevertheless, many Debian contributors find AI tools helpful when
> contributing to Debian, and ultimately for improving Debian.
> 
> Given both the benefits and risks of AI assistance, and the controversial
> discussions within the community, the Debian project finds it necessary to
> clarify its position on AI-assisted contributions and establish clear
> guidelines.
> 
> The Debian project allows AI-assisted contributions (partially or fully
> generated by an LLM), provided the following conditions are met:
> 
> 1. **Legal Compatibility:** Contributors should ensure that the terms and
>    conditions of the generative AI tool do not impose contractual
>    restrictions that conflict with the distribution, modification, or use of
>    the output in the context of Debian.
> 
> 2. **Licensing and Attribution:** If any pre-existing copyrighted materials
>    (including pre-existing code licensed as free software) authored or owned
>    by third parties are included in the AI tool’s output, prior to
>    contributing such output to the project, the contributor should verify
>    that such materials are available under a compatible license.
>    Additionally, the contributor should provide notice and attribution of
>    such third party rights, along with information about the applicable
>    license terms, with their contribution.
> 
> 3. **Accountability:** Contributors assume full responsibility for their
>    contributions, including vouching for the technical merit, security,
>    license compliance, and utility of their submissions. The contributor
>    remains solely accountable for the entirety of these contributions.
>    Contributors should fully understand the proposed changes and be prepared
>    to justify them.
> 
> 4. **Explicit Disclosure:** When a significant portion of the contribution
>    is taken from a tool without manual modification, contributors should
>    disclose the tool's use. This may be recorded using Git trailers, such as
>    `Generated-By:` or `Assisted-By:`.
> 
> 5. **Prior Discussion of Bulk or Automated Changes:** Similarly to the
>    mass-bug filing process (Developers Reference section 7.1.1),
>    contributors should discuss their intention before submitting bulk or
>    autonomously generated contributions. Any such automated process should
>    be overseen by a human who remains accountable for its behavior and
>    output.
> 
> 6. **Community Courtesy:** To respect the preferences of project members who
>    wish to avoid AI-generated content, contributors should clearly label
>    such content in mailing list and bug discussions (e.g., by identifying
>    such content with a clear disclaimer or a machine-readable tag like
>    `[AI-Generated]`).
> 
> 7. **Confidentiality and Privacy:** Contributors must not use generative AI
>    tools that transmit data to untrusted providers with non-public or
>    sensitive project information (such as embargoed security reports or
>    private communication), as this may lead to the unintended disclosure of
>    confidential data.
> 
> END PROPOSAL

I second this option.
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