...without having to refresh the form.

So, once a user hits the "edit" link next to machine-generated names in order to customize them, if they change their mind, how do they get back to auto-generate? Page refresh? If they do that, they'll loose the data they might have entered in other fields in that form.

How about an "auto-generate" link next to the machine name field that reverts to the previous state?

GitHub Link: 
https://github.com/backdrop/backdrop-issues/issues/1608
GitHub Issue #: 
1608