# Apache Arrow: AI-friendly with conditions

> AI tools may be used to generate PRs, but authors should review and own every change, be upfront about what was AI-generated, and disclose any copyrighted material. PRs that look fully AI-generated with little author engagement may be closed, and AI agents should never ping maintainers.

- What it is: A cross-language development platform for in-memory columnar data. (Library)
- Homepage: https://arrow.apache.org/
- Repository: https://github.com/apache/arrow
- Overall stance: AI-friendly with conditions (Mostly friendly). AI-assisted contributions are accepted with extra rules, such as disclosing AI use, or AI is banned for issues or written text.
- Last classified: 2026-10-09 (manual review, medium confidence)
- Policy last changed: 2026-10-09
- Web page: https://areweaifriendly.com/projects/apache-arrow/

## Policy by area

- **Code contributions**: AI-friendly with conditions (AI use must be disclosed; Contributor takes full responsibility; A human must review the output; Output must be license-compatible; No autonomous agents)
- **Issues & bug reports**: No AI policy
- **AI-written text**: No AI policy

## In their own words

- Code contributions: "We are not opposed to the use of AI tools in generating PRs, but recommend the following:" (https://arrow.apache.org/docs/dev/developers/overview.html)
- Code contributions: "Only submit a PR if you are able to debug and own the changes yourself - review all generated code to understand every detail" (https://arrow.apache.org/docs/dev/developers/overview.html)
- Code contributions: "Be upfront about AI usage and summarise what was AI-generated" (https://arrow.apache.org/docs/dev/developers/overview.html)
- Code contributions: "AI agents should never tag or ping maintainers" (https://arrow.apache.org/docs/dev/developers/overview.html)
- Code contributions: "PR authors are also responsible for disclosing any copyrighted materials in submitted contributions." (https://arrow.apache.org/docs/dev/developers/overview.html)

## Sources

- [Apache Arrow Contributing Overview](https://arrow.apache.org/docs/dev/developers/overview.html), fetched 2026-10-09