Understanding AI's Impact on Developer Workflows | The Research Blog

AI coding assistants are increasingly integrated into developers' daily workflows, offering perceived benefits in productivity and efficiency, yet their long-term impact remains complex and nuanced. A study by the Human-AI Experience team analyzed two years of telemetry data from 800 developers using JetBrains IDEs, complemented by surveys and interviews, to explore how AI tools reshape workflows over time. The findings reveal a discrepancy between developers' perceptions and their actual behaviors, as telemetry data showed sustained increases in code production, editing, and context switching among AI users, despite developers often perceiving minimal change. While AI tools appear to enhance code reuse and productivity, their impact on code quality is less clear, with developers continuing to double-check AI-generated code. The study underscores the importance of mixed-method approaches to capture the subtle shifts in workflows that AI introduces, offering a deeper understanding of how these tools influence everyday development practices beyond initial impressions.