Does AI Secretly Slow Developers Down?

The AI Daily Brief discusses a recent study suggesting AI coding tools may slow developers down, contrary to the expectation of increased productivity. The study involved testing developers with varying AI skills on coding tasks, revealing a 19% decrease in productivity when using AI, particularly on moderately complex tasks. The host critiques the study's methodology, particularly the assessment of the developers' AI experience and the models used, arguing that the results don't account for the learning curve and the evolving nature of AI coding tools. The host emphasizes that coding with AI requires a shift in work patterns and that the study's findings shouldn't lead to dismissing AI tools but rather understanding the need for proper training and workflow reorganization to realize productivity gains. The episode also covers Apple's potential acquisition of Mistral, Cognition's acquisition of Windsurf, and Meta's plans for closed-source models and massive compute infrastructure.