Google has a secret new project that is teaching artificial intelligence to write and fix code. It could reduce the need for human engineers in the future.

Google is working on a secretive project that uses machine learning to train code to write, fix, and update itself. This project is part of a broader push by Google into so-called generative artificial intelligence, which uses algorithms to create images, videos, code, and more. It could have profound implications for the company's future and developers who write code. The project, which began life inside Alphabet's X research unit and was codenamed Pitchfork, moved into Google's Labs group this summer, according to people familiar with the matter. By moving into Google, it signaled its increased importance to leaders.