Open Source Initiative expands its role to AI and machine learning

Wright Studio -- Shutterstock

In the beginning, all software was "free software" and "open source." But, as software became commercialized, almost all software became proprietary. In revolt against this, Richard M. Stallman (RMS) took James Gosling's Emacs text editor and relicensed it under GNU Public License (GPL), the first free software license, in 1983.

While the rise of free software fundamentally changed how software was used, not everyone was happy with RMS, and his Free Software Foundation (FSF) took on software licensing. So, in 1998, Christine Peterson, in a meeting with Jon "Maddog" Hall, Larry Augustin, Eric S. Raymond, Bruce Perens, and other free software luminaries, came up with the term Open Source.

Open Source

• GitHub vs GitLab: Which program is right for you?
• The best Linux distros for beginners
• Feren OS is a Linux distribution that's as lovely as it is easy to use
• How to add new users to your Linux machine

The key difference, then and now, between the two is that free software is about the ethics of sharing code, while open source is focused on the practical benefits of sharing code. 

Or, as early OSI leader and currently Project Lead of OS-Climate Michael Tiemann put it, open source was meant to "dump the moralizing and confrontational attitude that had been associated with 'free software'" and instead promote the open-source approach on "pragmatic, business-case grounds."

Enterprise Software

• ChatGPT's next big challenge: Helping Microsoft to challenge Google search
• When will Microsoft end support for your version of Windows or Office?
• Tech in 2023: 6 new priorities for your shortlist
• The 14 best web hosting services: Which is right for your website?

Open source is also no longer just about developers and businesses, far from it. As Deborah Bryant, the OSI's new US Policy Director, explained, "In today's world, complexity increases constantly and policy-making responses to economic and security matters rise as open-source software's role continues to play a critical role in public and societal concerns."

She's right. Only a few weeks after she arrived at her new post, the US Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman, Democrat Gary Peters, and top-ranking Republican Rob Portman introduced legislation to help secure open-source software. Open-source supporters don't just need a voice in government policy toward open source, they must have one. Government policy decisions will impact our open-source software ecosystem. The OSI, both in the US and in Europe, with Phipps, is addressing this requirement.

Also:Meta AI guru LeCun says most of today's AI approaches will never lead to true intelligence

Show Comments