AI Coding Tools Boost Code Volume, Not Software Output

AI coding assistants and agents significantly increase the volume of code generated, with a 30 percent rise in total lines of code, a 20 percent increase in commits, and a 23 percent boost in pull requests. However, this surge in code does not translate into higher software output. Human code review remains a major bottleneck, as the review process lengthens, pull requests require more revisions, and reviewers leave more comments. The study analyzed data from over 700 firms, tracking 300 million work events and issue management data from 2021 to 2026. Despite the increased code production, the resolution rate for software features did not improve significantly after AI tools were introduced.