Sustaining OSS

Talk for OggCamp 2024
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In this talk I explain how at the Sovereign Tech Fund we fund Open Source, our programs and our overall vision. I hope it can inspire you to take action as well!

Transcript

1. Sustaining OSS! 12 Oct 2024: OggCamp
2. Hello there 👋 2 I’m Lorenzo Sciandra @kelset Technologist @ STF before: Microsoft, react-native
3. What do we do? 3 xkcd “Dependency”
4. What do we do? 4 xkcd “Dependency” 🇩🇪 💰
5. So far… 5 critical technologies worthy of investment identified 195 technologies supported since October 2022 54 M€ invested in commissioned work 23.50
6. For example: 6 Technologies
7. …but how? 7
8. How do we do what we do? 8 Fellowship for Maintainers Our Programs Bug Resilience Program General Investment others (Challenges, etc.)
9. General Investment 9 • Our primary program • “Invests in open digital base technologies that are vital to the development of other software or enable digital networking” • Key Criteria: • Prevalence (widely adopted technologies) • Relevance (importance to societal sectors) • Vulnerability (lack of other funding) • Public Interest (societal benefits) • Activities (well-defined, realistic, and impactful actions aligned with project goals) • Expertise (demonstration of deep knowledge and skills by the applicants)
10. General Investment 10 The overall pipeline for applications:
11. General Investment 11 PHP Project Description
12. Fellowship for Maintainers 12 • A new program • The focus is on the human behind the screen • Recognises invisible, recurring work • Developed with community input and feedback STF News
13. Fellowship for Maintainers 13 Months of full support (either full-time or freelance) 12 Maintainers of multiple FOSS projects 5 A fluid approach where we will shape the program together with the fellows Pilot
14. Bug Resilience Program 14 • Focused on proactively increasing security in FOSS projects • Provides 3 types of services: 1. Direct Contributions ➡ Neighbourhoodie Software 2. Bug & Fix Bounty Platform ➡ YesWeHack 3. Code Audits ➡ OSTIF (Open Source Technology Improvement Fund)
15. Bug Resilience Program 15 BRP Report
16. Other programs and ideas 16 • We never stop looking for new ways to support FOSS! • Example: Challenges • Set focus on key themes • Engage with communities and practitioners • Exploration of different, innovative ways to address problems • Streamlined application, selection, and contractual processes
17. A lot of different ways 17 Fellowship for Maintainers Our Programs Bug Resilience Program General Investment others (Challenges, etc.)
18. …but why? 18
19. Our mission 19 The Sovereign Tech Fund aims to sustainably strengthen the open source ecosystem. We focus on security, resilience, technological diversity, and the people behind the code.
20. Our vision 20 Digital Sovereignty
21. Our vision 21 Digital Sovereignty the self-determined use of digital technologies and systems by individuals, private organisations and the state.
22. Our vision 22 xkcd “Dependency” 🇩🇪 💰
23. Our vision 23 🇩🇪 💰 🇪🇺 🇺🇸 … 💰 🏭 🏣 🏢
24. roundtable 24
25. Thanks for participating! 25 Lorenzo Sciandra @kelset Technologist @ STF Reach out: • info@sovereigntechfund.de • @sovtechfund@mastodon.social • linkedin • sovereigntechfund.de