AI Summary

  • Topic: Navigating the future of AI-augmented software engineering.
  • Context:
    • Course aims to apply generative AI across various disciplines.
    • Focus on software engineering research to improve system economy, reliability, security, and effectiveness.
  • Overview:
    • Introduction to AI augmentation in software engineering.
    • Based on a study by the Software Engineering Institute, funded by NSF and DARPA.
    • Study available online, published November 2021.
  • Software’s Role:
    • Software is increasingly integral to all aspects of life, including hardware development.
    • The study co-authored by the speaker aimed to outline a research roadmap for software engineering’s future.
  • AI’s Impact on Software Development:
    • Current manual software development will evolve into a collaborative process with AI, focusing on intent rather than just programming.
    • ChatGPT’s release in November 2022 exemplified the rapid advancement of generative AI.
  • Public Perception:
    • Concerns about AI’s potential negative impact have escalated, but the speaker believes it’s not the end of the world.
  • Study’s Focus Areas:
    • Six research areas identified, with a focus on two related to AI augmentation:
      • AI-augmented software development: Using AI tools in building systems.
      • Engineering AI-enabled software systems: Building systems that operate using AI.
  • AI Augmentation Taxonomy:
    • Two dimensions of AI augmentation:
      • Degree of AI augmentation in the software development life cycle (SDLC).
      • Degree of AI augmentation for system operations.
  • Examples of AI Augmentation:
    • Conventional systems: Built and operated without AI.
    • AI-augmented tools for conventional systems: Using AI for code generation, reviews, and testing.
    • AI-augmented system operations with conventional development: Recommendation engines using machine learning.
    • AI-augmented systems built using AI techniques: Self-driving cars with AI-driven DevOps.
  • Conclusion:
    • The presentation serves as an introduction to the landscape of AI-augmented software engineering.