🚀 Gitlab Duo: Boost your Developer Workflow
At EDGEMTech, we’re always looking for ways to streamline development workflows and make collaboration easier for our teams and clients. One of the newest tools making waves in the DevOps and AI-assisted development space is GitLab Duo.
In this article, we’ll explore what GitLab Duo is, how its IDE integration can help developers as they code, and how to set it up for merge request (MR) reviews directly within your GitLab group.
❓ What Is GitLab Duo?
GitLab Duo is GitLab’s answer to AI-powered development tools, designed to assist you throughout the software development lifecycle. It's their direct competitor to tools like GitHub Copilot, aiming to bring AI into your coding, code reviews, and documentation workflows.
Currently in beta, GitLab Duo is actively being developed and improved with frequent updates. While it shows promising features, especially for teams already using GitLab, it's important to note that its capabilities are not yet on the same level as GitHub Copilot in terms of accuracy, speed, and contextual understanding.
That said, GitLab Duo is evolving quickly, and testing it early gives you a chance to shape its future while potentially boosting productivity in GitLab-native environments.
⚠ Attention: To use the AI features, you must have purchased Premium or Ultimate subscription plan.
🧠Code Smarter: GitLab Duo IDE Integration
One of the most exciting features of GitLab Duo is its IDE integration, which brings AI-powered suggestions directly into your coding environment.
Supported IDEs
GitLab Duo supports integration with:
Visual Studio Code (VS Code)
JetBrains IDEs (IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, etc.)
🧠Smarter Code Reviews with GitLab Duo MR Review
In addition to helping you write code, GitLab Duo can also assist with reviewing it.
With GitLab Duo's AI-powered Merge Request Review, you can:
Automatically summarize large MRs
Get AI-generated feedback and suggestions
Speed up the review process by identifying potential issues early
Setting Up GitLab Duo for MR Reviews (Group-Level)
If you're an admin of a self-hosted GitLab instance or managing a group, here's how to enable GitLab Duo for MR reviews:
1. Enable Experimental Features (if not already)
Navigate to Admin > Settings > General > Features
Enable "Enable experimental features"
2. Enable GitLab Duo at the Group Level
Go to your GitLab group settings
Look for the GitLab Duo section
Enable AI features such as:
Code suggestions
Merge Request AI reviewer
Code explanation
3. Use It in MRs
Once enabled:
When opening or reviewing an MR, you’ll see an “AI Review” button or summary section
Clicking this will trigger GitLab Duo to summarize the changes and offer suggestions
💭Final Thoughts
GitLab Duo is a promising tool that brings AI assistance into the daily workflow of developers, especially when it comes to writing code and conducting merge request reviews. While it’s not yet a replacement for human expertise, it can act as a first layer of review, helping to identify obvious issues or summarize changes before a team member steps in.
As with any AI tool, it's important to remain cautious: GitLab Duo may miss contextual or logical nuances that only experienced developers can fully understand. The goal isn’t to replace code reviews, but to make them faster and more convenient, freeing up time for deeper, value-added feedback.
At EDGEMTech 💎, we're actively integrating GitLab Duo into our development workflows, not only to explore its potential, but also to continue delivering high-quality solutions efficiently. We're committed to adopting the best tools while staying critical of their limits.
⏭ What’s Next?
While setting up GitLab Duo on GitLab.com is relatively straightforward, enabling it on a self-hosted GitLab instance comes with more complexity, especially around feature flags, licensing, and permissions.
We’re currently fine-tuning our setup for self-hosted environments, and we’ll be sharing a detailed walkthrough in an upcoming blog post.
👉 Stay tuned!