AI as a Pair Programming Buddy: Exploring Design Considerations for Human-AI Collaboration

This qualitative study delves into the collaboration experiences of programmers with Artificial Intelligence (AI) in programming, with a focus on key aspects like usability, workload, trust, and learning. Programmers were assigned coding tasks using Copilot, an AI tool, and interviewed to gather their feedback. Effective communication emerges as a pivotal factor in ensuring successful human-AI collaboration. The AI system should grasp intentions, offer accurate code suggestions, provide transparent explanations, and handle errors akin to a human partner. To enhance the programmer's experience with AI-assisted pair programming, the study presents a framework that prioritizes improved communication, code suggestions, explanations, and error resolution. This framework promises to yield a more productive and rewarding experience with AI. The research provides valuable user perspectives, deepening our understanding of AI-assisted pair programming dynamics. Moreover, it lays the groundwork for future AI developments, particularly in supporting programmers. Given the continuous advancements in AI, human-AI collaboration holds tremendous potential to boost productivity and innovation in software development. Leveraging AI's capabilities in programming can unlock greater efficiency and creativity, heralding a promising future for AI integration in the field. Through this investigation, we gain insights that pave the way for a more seamless and productive collaboration between programmers and AI systems. This contributes to the advancement of AI applications in programming domains.