Andrew Kelley, president of the open-source programming language Zig, has implemented a strict ban on AI-assisted code contributions. During an appearance on the JetBrains podcast, Kelley declared that submissions generated or edited by large language models are invariably garbage and detrimental to the project. Under the new policy, the Zig repository will reject any code created, debugged, brainstormed, or paraphrased by artificial intelligence tools. Kelley explained that the decision stems from a critical shortage of human reviewers. The core team, responsible for maintaining the language, currently faces a bottleneck with approximately 200 open pull requests. AI-generated submissions, which he described as having negative value, consume review time without offering meaningful improvements. This delays the acceptance of genuine contributions and frustrates the small but dedicated team of maintainers. The ban specifically targets what Kelley termed "slop contributions" from drive-by contributors. These are individuals who submit code or pull requests without intending to join the core development team or engage in the long-term mentorship that Zig values. While big tech companies prioritize maximizing coding efficiency, Zig's mission focuses on teaching and improving programming skills. Accepting AI-generated code undermines this educational goal, as it allows users to bypass the learning process entirely. The implementation of the policy also serves a practical administrative purpose. Kelley noted that setting a standard where only "good" AI code is accepted would require reviewers to constantly judge the quality and origin of each submission. A blanket ban provides a clear, easily enforceable rule that eliminates this ambiguity. Zig, maintained as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, relies on a network of contributors who adhere to a specific code of conduct. The language has already gained significant traction in Silicon Valley, notably serving as the foundation for Bun, a JavaScript runtime that was recently acquired by Anthropic. The Zig AI ban has already sparked some tension with the Bun community, highlighting a growing divide in how different projects approach the integration of artificial intelligence. As tools like Claude Code and OpenAI's Codex become increasingly prevalent, the proportion of AI-written code in the industry continues to rise. However, Zig remains an outlier by rejecting these contributions outright. By prioritizing human mentorship and code quality over speed, the project aims to preserve the integrity of its development process and ensure that new contributors genuinely understand the language they are helping to build.