Repository Analysis

bufbuild/buf

The best way of working with Protocol Buffers.

7.1 Low AI signal View on GitHub

Analysis Overview

This report presents the forensic synthetic code analysis of bufbuild/buf, a Go project with 11,284 GitHub stars. SynthScan v2.0 examined 205,829 lines of code across 1463 source files, recording 1299 pattern matches distributed across 6 syntactic categories. The overall adjusted score of 7.1 places this repository in the Low AI signal band.

The scanner applied 160+ deterministic lexical heuristics, multi-line block detectors, abstract syntax tree depth profilers, and a cross-file Jaccard similarity matrix to construct a statistically normalised synthetic code estimate. All matches are individually weighted by severity coefficient and contextual multiplier before summation, and the resulting headline score is temporally discounted to account for the repository's development history relative to the commercial emergence of large language model coding tooling (November 2022 onward).

7.1
Adjusted Score
7.1
Raw Score
100%
Time Factor
2026-07-13
Last Push
11.3K
Stars
Go
Language
205.8K
Lines of Code
1.5K
Files
1.3K
Pattern Hits
2026-07-14
Scan Date
0.00
HC Hit Rate

What These Metrics Mean

Adjusted Score
Primary synthetic code indicator. Raw score normalised per 1,000 lines of code and multiplied by the temporal discount factor. This is the definitive comparative metric — use it to rank repositories by AI authorship density.
Raw Score
The unmodified sum of all severity-weighted, context-multiplied pattern match scores before temporal discounting. Reflects the absolute signal strength independent of when the repository was last active.
Time Factor
The temporal discount multiplier (0–100%) applied to the raw score. Repositories last updated before ChatGPT's launch (Nov 2022) receive a 5% factor. Full signal is only assigned to repositories active in the post-adoption era (Jan 2024+).
Pattern Hits
Total count of individual pattern matches across all files and categories. A high hit count with a low score may indicate a very large codebase with isolated AI snippets; a low count with a high score indicates dense, concentrated AI signatures.
HC Hit Rate
High+Critical pattern hits per file, averaged across the repository. This orthogonal signal catches repositories where a few files are densely packed with high-severity AI tells — a strong indicator even when the normalised score appears moderate due to codebase size.
Lines of Code / Files
Total lines and files analysed. The scanner examines 94 file extensions. These denominators are used to normalise the score, enabling fair comparison between repositories of vastly different sizes.

Score History

This chart maps the temporal evolution of the adjusted synthetic code score across successive scan runs. An upward trajectory indicates ongoing incorporation of AI-generated code or expanding LLM-assisted scaffolding; a stable or declining trajectory may reflect active human refactoring, code removal, or the adoption of stricter authorship policies. The dashed secondary line (right axis) independently tracks total raw pattern hit count, which can diverge from the normalised score when codebase size changes significantly between scans.

Severity Breakdown

Classifies detected patterns by their diagnostic confidence and structural impact. CRITICAL patterns (coefficient 10) represent definitive synthetic signatures — hallucinated imports, explicit LLM attribution metadata — virtually never produced by human authors. HIGH (5) indicates strong structural tells such as cross-file repetition or cross-linguistic idioms. MEDIUM (2) covers recognisable conversational padding and AI-specific vocabulary. LOW (1) captures subtle indicators like tautological comments and generic boilerplate that require density to carry independent signal.

CRITICAL 0HIGH 0MEDIUM 64LOW 1235

Directory Score Breakdown

This horizontal bar chart decomposes the repository's raw synthetic code score by top-level directory, allowing you to pinpoint precisely which modules or components carry the highest AI authorship density. Directories with disproportionately high scores relative to their size warrant targeted manual review: concentrated AI signatures often trace back to mass-generated configuration layers, auto-ported test suites, LLM-scaffolded boilerplate classes, or entire subsystems authored under heavy copilot assistance. Use this view to prioritise your human code-review effort.

Pattern Findings

The scanner identified 1299 distinct pattern matches across 6 syntactic categories. Each entry below represents a discrete location in the source code where the engine recorded a statistically significant AI authorship indicator. Expand any category row to inspect the individual file paths, line numbers, code snippets, and the lexical context (CODE, COMMENT, or STRING) in which each match was detected.

Reading the findings table: The Severity column indicates the diagnostic confidence level (CRITICAL / HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW). The Context column identifies whether the match occurred inside executable code, an inline comment, or a string literal — comment-context matches receive a ×1.5 weight because LLMs systematically over-annotate. The ⚡ bolt icon marks clustered matches: three or more patterns within a 10-line window, each receiving an additional ×1.5 density multiplier as dense clusters constitute far stronger evidence of synthetic authorship than isolated hits.

Over-Commented Block1231 hits · 1230 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOW.godoclint.yaml1# Configuration file version.COMMENT
LOW.godoclint.yaml21# files that their relative path (with respect to the config file path) does notCOMMENT
LOW.godoclint.yaml41# List of rules to enable *in addition to* the default set.COMMENT
LOW.godoclint.yaml61 - require-docCOMMENT
LOWcmd/protoc-gen-buf-breaking/breaking.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/buf.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/buf_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/workspace_unix_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/workspace_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/workspace_windows_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/workspace_subdir_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/buf_unix_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/imports_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/breaking/breaking_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/breaking/breaking.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/beta/internal/internal.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…d/buf/internal/command/beta/bufpluginv2/bufpluginv2.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/beta/price/price.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…mmand/beta/registry/webhook/webhooklist/webhooklist.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…d/beta/registry/webhook/webhookdelete/webhookdelete.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…d/beta/registry/webhook/webhookcreate/webhookcreate.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…/command/beta/registry/plugin/pluginpush/pluginpush.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…mand/beta/registry/plugin/plugindelete/plugindelete.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…d/buf/internal/command/beta/bufpluginv1/bufpluginv1.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…rnal/command/beta/bufpluginv1beta1/bufpluginv1beta1.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…d/buf/internal/command/beta/studioagent/studioagent.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/lint/lint.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/lsfiles/lsfiles.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…/command/config/configlslintrules/configlslintrules.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…d/buf/internal/command/config/configinit/configinit.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…internal/command/config/configmigrate/configmigrate.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…nal/command/config/configmigrate/configmigrate_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/config/internal/internal.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…rnal/command/config/configlsmodules/configlsmodules.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…/config/configlsbreakingrules/configlsbreakingrules.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…/sourceedit/sourceeditdeprecate/sourceeditdeprecate.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…buf/internal/command/plugin/pluginprune/pluginprune.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…d/buf/internal/command/plugin/pluginpush/pluginpush.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOW…f/internal/command/plugin/pluginupdate/pluginupdate.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/lsp/lspserve/lspserve.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/lsp/lspserve/debug.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/push/push.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/curl/curl.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/curl/curl.go761}COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/curl/curl.go1261 if httpClient, ok := makeCompletionHTTPClient(cmd, isSecure, parsed.Host); ok {COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/curl/curl.go1381// example, given servicesCOMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/curl/curl_completion_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/dep/depprune/depprune.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/dep/internal/internal.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/dep/depgraph/depgraph.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/dep/depgraph/depgraph_test.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/dep/depupdate/depupdate.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go1// Copyright 2020-2026 Buf Technologies, Inc.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go81 # Use the plugin hosted at buf.build/protocolbuffers/go at version v1.28.1.COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go121 # The generation strategy to use. There are two options:COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go141 #COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go161 # Each override rule specifies an option, the value for this option andCOMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go181 # - php_metadata_namespace_suffixCOMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go241 inputs:COMMENT
LOWcmd/buf/internal/command/generate/generate.go281 # Optional.COMMENT
1171 more matches not shown…
Decorative Section Separators63 hits · 218 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_lsp_test.go293 // ── Top-level keys ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_lsp_test.go320 // ── lint sub-keys ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_lsp_test.go352 // ── breaking sub-keys ───────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_lsp_test.go369 // ── Rule names as values in use/except ──────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_lsp_test.go396 // ── plugin entry keys ───────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_lsp_test.go408 // ── Positions that should return no hover ────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go38 // ── Top-level key completions ──────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go54 // ── lint key completions ───────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go65 // ── breaking key completions ───────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go76 // ── plugins item key completions ───────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go85 // ── Value completions ──────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go101 // ── Sequence value completions (lint.use / lint.except) ────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go126 // ── Sequence after existing items ─────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go135 // ── Blank lines between parent and child ──────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go144 // ── Partial key in breaking block ─────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go153 // ── Plugin item continuation ───────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go163 // ── Bare-parent-key heuristic ─────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_policy_yaml_completion_test.go181 // ── No completions ─────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go110 // ── module-level lint keys ─────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go119 // ── plugins item key completions ───────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go128 // ── policies item key completions ──────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go137 // ── Value completions ──────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go263 // ── Sibling key (except alongside use) ────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go272 // ── Blank lines between parent and child ──────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go281 // ── Partial key in lint block ──────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go290 // ── Second module item keys ────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go40 // ── Top-level key completions ──────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go64 // ── lint key completions ───────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go80 // ── breaking key completions ───────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go89 // ── modules item key completions ───────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go160 // ── Sequence value completions (lint.use / lint.except) ────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go199 // ── ignore_only key completions ────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go231 // ── Sequence after existing items ─────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go247 // ── Module-level lint and breaking sequence values ─────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go316 // ── Bare-parent-key heuristic ─────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go357 // ── Existing-key filtering ────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go384 // ── No completions ─────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_completion_test.go412 // ── CRLF line endings ─────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_lsp_test.go349 // ── Top-level keys ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_lsp_test.go376 // ── managed sub-keys ────────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_lsp_test.go393 // ── managed.disable rule keys ───────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_lsp_test.go405 // ── managed.override rule keys ──────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_lsp_test.go417 // ── plugin entry keys ───────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_lsp_test.go474 // ── input entry keys ────────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_lsp_test.go536 // ── Positions that should return no hover ────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_completion_test.go49 // ── Top-level key completions ───────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_completion_test.go73 // ── Plugin key completions ──────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_completion_test.go125 // ── Input key completions ────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_completion_test.go193 // ── Managed key completions ─────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_completion_test.go235 // ── Value completions ────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_completion_test.go286 // ── Bare-parent-key heuristic ─────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_gen_yaml_completion_test.go305 // ── No completions ───────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go603 // ── Top-level keys ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go630 // ── Module entry sub-keys ────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go652 // ── lint sub-keys ────────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go709 // ── breaking sub-keys ────────────────────────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go741 // ── Rule/category names as values in lint.use ─────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go758 // ── Rule/category names as values in lint.except ──────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go765 // ── Rule names as keys in lint.ignore_only ────────────────────────────COMMENT
MEDIUMprivate/buf/buflsp/buf_yaml_lsp_test.go772 // ── Rule/category names as values in breaking.use ─────────────────────COMMENT
3 more matches not shown…
Modern AI Meta-Vocabulary1 hit · 3 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
MEDIUMcmd/buf/internal/command/dep/depgraph/depgraph.go189 // We first scaffold a module with no deps populated yet.COMMENT
Redundant / Tautological Comments2 hits · 3 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWmake/go/scripts/checknolintlint.bash15# Check if nolintlint linter is enabled in configCOMMENT
LOWmake/go/scripts/checknolintlint.bash35# Check if nolintlint is configured according to standards.COMMENT
Verbosity Indicators1 hit · 2 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWprivate/bufpkg/bufimage/util.go83 // potentialDirPaths are paths that we need to check if they are directoriesCOMMENT
Slop Phrases1 hit · 2 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOW…bufpkg/bufimage/bufimagefuzz/bufimagefuzz_unix_test.go43 // To focus on just one test in the corpus, put its file name here. Don't forget to revert before committing.COMMENT