Linus Torvalds declares massive AI-fueled code surges as the new normal for Linux

Linux 7.1-rc3 arrives with a heavy 33% focus on networking, Apple Mac USB-C support, and a significant shift toward Rust-driven memory safety.

Linus Torvalds has just released Linux 7.1-rc3, stating that the unusually large patch sizes, likely due to the use of AI tools in coding, wasn’t just a blip and is in fact the new normal for the kernel. This cycle saw networking patches dominate, at a third of all updates and fixes. There are also significant security and stability patches for use-after-free vulnerabilities across Bluetooth and GPU drivers and support for Apple Mac USB-C networking and high-end AlphaTheta/Pioneer DJ equipment.

In recent releases, Torvalds noted that more kernel patches had been coming in and he wondered if it was a blip, but he now thinks it's the new normal. Given that we are well past a major version jump and the fact that this release is larger than expected for this point in the cycle, it must be assumed that this regime or larger changes is how things will continue to be going forward. In the past, at this point in the release, developers would be consolidating the features they would have added, but with AI tools, they are able to be a bit more productive and submit more each week.

This release has 33% of its patches dedicated to networking core and drivers. There are also improvements for USB-C networking on Apple Macs and specialised audio handling for the AlphaTheta (Pioneer DJ) EUPHONIA. This week's release also sees some significant work being poured into the Chinese CPU architecture LoongArch, targeting KVM virtualization and interrupt handling.

What is interesting with this release is the high number of memory safety patches, alongside the greater use of Rust in the kernel. Rust has memory safety built in, so as more components are written in this language, there will be less need for so many memory safety fixes that we currently see in high volumes.

Hopefully, these larger patches will not cause any delays this cycle, so that it can be pushed out for public use and users get support for new hardware faster.

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Posted Monday 11 May 2026 at 3:44 pm AEST (my time).

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