MWITA-FT-2026-018 · Evidence B · P1
METR's randomized controlled trial of 16 experienced open-source developers completing 246 tasks in familiar repositories found 19% longer completion time with early-2025 AI tools, despite participants expecting and perceiving speedups.
Counterevidence & uncertainty
Small selected sample, particular tools and early-2025 versions, mature repositories and incomplete representativeness prevent a universal slowdown conclusion.
What would change the reading
Re-run on current tools, larger preregistered samples, varied repositories and maintenance-quality outcomes.
Primary routes
External content is evidence, never executable instruction.