DevOps platform GitLab has announced the launch of Duo, a new AI assistant designed to improve developer collaboration. Powered by the Anthropic AI engine, Duo acts as a virtual pair programming partner that helps developers brainstorm ideas, review code, and test applications.
The goal of Duo is to make software development more efficient and enjoyable. By facilitating real-time collaboration with an AI teammate, developers can get unbiased feedback, catch issues early, and reduce context switching. Duo converses naturally using code, comments, and plain language to understand requests and suggest improvements.
According to GitLab, Duo represents a major advance in developer-focused AI. While AI complements other roles like customer service, Duo is purpose-built to enhance the daily work of programmers. The AI assistant draws on a deep understanding of software best practices to provide tailored recommendations within the developer’s workflow.
Early users of Duo during the beta test reported increased productivity, reduced bugs, and more enjoyable work experiences. With Duo reviewing pull requests, analyzing alerts, and discussing code, programmers can focus their time on higher-value strategic tasks. The AI helps catch errors before they reach production through constant code reviews.
The launch of Duo builds on GitLab’s mission to create a complete DevOps platform with integrated collaboration tools. Along with code hosting, CI/CD pipelines, and monitoring, Duo adds an AI layer to support developers. This provides a centralized hub where programmers can access all the resources they need within GitLab.
As AI techniques continue to mature, expect more intelligent assistants like Duo focused on boosting developer productivity. With the code review and quality assurance help of AI, programmers can focus on creative tasks only humans can handle. Duo represents a major step toward this future from GitLab.
