**Linus Torvalds on Linux’s Evolution: Steady Progress, AI’s Role, and Why Rust Isn’t a Magic Bullet**
In a recent conversation at Open Source Summit India 2026, Linux creator Linus Torvalds offered a candid glimpse into his philosophy on Linux development, the impact of AI, and his views on modern programming tools like Rust.
**A Philosophy of Incremental Progress**
Torvalds reiterated his preference for steady, incremental improvements rather than dramatic, feature-laden releases. “For me, the highlight has been that it’s been a very steady progression of continued improvements,” he said regarding Linux 7.1. He emphasized that the Linux kernel development process, powered by Git which he created 20 years ago, is designed for continuous, evolutionary progress, not revolutionary upheavals. The focus remains on careful, tested merges, with Torvalds personally overseeing about 200 merges during each kernel merge window.
**AI: A Double-Edged Sword**
While AI tools are increasingly being adopted by Linux developers for maintenance and bug detection, Torvalds highlighted the challenges they bring. AI can generate convincing but incorrect bug reports—”hallucinations” that waste significant human time. Torvalds noted a shift in early 2024 where AI-generated “junk” often outweighed useful code. However, he sees a more collaborative future where AI acts as a productivity aid rather than an autonomous solution, especially for prototyping, while human oversight remains critical for complex kernel-level fixes.
**Beyond Programming: The Role of a Development Lead**
Reflecting a broader shift in his role, Torvalds confirmed he is no longer a hands-on programmer. “I’m not a programmer, I’m a development lead,” he stated, explaining that he now focuses on understanding the broader intent of code contributions via pull requests rather than diving into code details. His own contributions are minimal, typically offering suggestions for maintainers to refine and test.
**Rust, C, and the Myth of a Silver Bullet**
Torvalds pushed back against the hype surrounding Rust, both in Linux kernel and Git development. While acknowledging Rust’s value for specific issues, he stressed that it doesn’t solve logic errors and doesn’t make up for poor programming. “Rust fixes a few easy bugs that you can make in C, but it does not fix the logic errors,” he said. He remains more excited about verification tools for C and maintains that “the raw and simple power of C” suits his “hack and slash” development style.
**Pragmatism Over Nostalgia**
Torvalds also reaffirmed his pragmatic approach to legacy technology. While committed to maintaining support for hardware as long as users rely on it, he doesn’t hesitate to phase out obsolete systems. Support for 486-class machines without hardware floating point will end with Linux 7.2, and discontinued support for networking standards like ISDN and ATM is part of a broader effort to shed technical debt.
Ultimately, the conversation revealed Torvalds as a pragmatic, evolving leader—someone who embraces tools that enhance productivity while remaining skeptical of tech hype, and who prioritizes steady, reliable progress over flashy transformations.
**Source:** ZDNET – Linus Torvalds on Linux 7.1, AI tools, and why Rust isn’t a panacea [https://www.zdnet.com/article/linus-torvalds-on-linux-7-1-ai-tools-and-why-rust-isnt-a-panacea/](https://www.zdnet.com/article/linus-torvalds-on-linux-7-1-ai-tools-and-why-rust-isnt-a-panacea/)
