New AI Tool Could Write Your Project Docs and Estimate Timelines

Every software project starts with planning: figuring out what to build and how long it will take. This phase, called Discovery, involves writing detailed documents like requirements and specs. It's time-consuming and often relies on expert judgment. Now, researchers are asking: can AI do this? A new paper tests a framework that uses AI to generate these documents and score task complexity, based on a 2004 model. They tried it on a real fintech project as a feasibility study—meaning they wanted to see if it could work, not prove it saves time.

The AI, powered by large language models (LLMs), acted like a smart assistant. It read project details and produced requirement documents and complexity scores. These scores are like difficulty ratings for tasks, which help teams estimate effort. In theory, this could speed up planning and reduce human error. But there's a catch: the researchers didn't track how long tasks actually took, so they can't say if the AI's scores were accurate. They're just showing the tool's output, not validated estimates.

So what does this mean for you? If you work in tech, this could eventually mean less time writing boring docs and more time building. But for now, it's early days. The study is a proof of concept, not a ready-to-use product. And it only looked at one project. Also, AI might miss nuances that experienced humans catch. So while it's exciting, don't expect AI to replace your project manager tomorrow. It's more like a glimpse into a future where AI handles the busywork of planning, letting humans focus on the big picture.