Recommended reading

Google issues official internal guidance on using AI for coding - and its devs might not be best pleased

News
By published

Google issues guide on AI use in coding

coding
(Image credit: Image by Pexels from Pixabay)
  • Google issues engineer-developed guidance on using AI for coding
  • Around one-third of the company's code is now AI-generated
  • Other companies are also using AI more to code

Google has issued new usage guidance and best practices for its internal developers using generative AI to help them code, and it may not come as a surprise the tech giant is pushing the security agenda.

Following a period of experimenting with AI and determining its use cases, the document was actually created by engineers (via 9To5Google) before getting approved and disseminated.

The guidance broadly encourages developers to adopt AI to boost productivity, enable faster iteration and enhance product development, however the importance of humans in maintaining security is stressed.

Google shares AI coding guidelines with workers

The guidance reportedly covers using AI for coding assistance, its limitations and building AI-based systems. However, Google also noted it wants to see workers adopt AI in other regions of their work to help boost productivity further.

Nevertheless, humans clearly remain an integral part of the development process, with code review, security and maintenance all areas that require further work.

"Our engineering teams are already regularly using our AI tools for coding, fixing bugs, and much more," the company confirmed.

"These recommendations and best practices, developed by a group of software engineers at Google, are designed to help all SWEs across the company get the most out of AI in their day-to-day work."

The push comes amid growing industry-wide adoption of GenAI in software engineering. Earlier in 2025, Google CEO Sundar Pichai revealed that around one-third of the company's code is now AI-generated.

Other companies, including Microsoft and Meta, are also increasing the amount of AI-generated code they use, and a recent study found that 30.1% of US Python code on GitHub was AI-generated.

Google's most formal guidance on AI in coding to date could also go on to inform policies for other companies. It also highlights the company's growing reliance on generative AI tools.

You might also like

Craig Hale
Craig Hale

With several years’ experience freelancing in tech and automotive circles, Craig’s specific interests lie in technology that is designed to better our lives, including AI and ML, productivity aids, and smart fitness. He is also passionate about cars and the decarbonisation of personal transportation. As an avid bargain-hunter, you can be sure that any deal Craig finds is top value!

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.