I'm attempting to set up a feature branch that will serve as an incubated environment in which we will convert our unit tests and framework to sit on top of googletest. The goal is to enable rapid parallel execution between multiple engineers. We want to defer codeowner reviews, particularly those involving external teams, until the changes are sufficiently prepared for a broader audience.

I have been unable so far to change the codeowners and CI configurations such that codeowner reviews are not required and that CI passes. For example, we have CI checks that depend on codeowners being available, but disabling those CI checks catches significant friction because other CI checks validate their existence and correctness.

I'd like us to formally support this style of development and make these settings toggleable by simple and reliable configuration controls.