Development PracticesBOF60min
Open Source in the Age of AI: Where's the value?
This talk explores how AI changes the value of open source, asking whether libraries and tools remain commercially useful when AI can generate code. It brings together maintainers and contributors to discuss funding, community, business models, and the purpose of open source in an AI-driven world.
talk.summaryAiDisclaimer
Trisha GeeDigital Aguacates
While some folks believe Open Source is important to do Because It's The Right Thing To Do, others have been able to persuade their organisations to open source valuable IP because it brings something to the company. Still others have been able to make money off an open source project they started.
Has this changed in the age of AI? If AI is being trained on open source and freely available code, does that make open source libraries and tools more or less valuable? Can an organisation still make money off their open source tools if AI agents can just go ahead and create code for them without needing training, consulting or support contracts?
Or was the value never in the money it brought, but in the community story? Making your code freely available, creating useful documentation and example code, supporting the community that grows around your open source tool might be the real goal, not simply the path to the destination.
Trisha wants to bring together open source maintainers, contributors and enthusiasts to discuss difficult questions around running an open source tool. Like:
Has this changed in the age of AI? If AI is being trained on open source and freely available code, does that make open source libraries and tools more or less valuable? Can an organisation still make money off their open source tools if AI agents can just go ahead and create code for them without needing training, consulting or support contracts?
Or was the value never in the money it brought, but in the community story? Making your code freely available, creating useful documentation and example code, supporting the community that grows around your open source tool might be the real goal, not simply the path to the destination.
Trisha wants to bring together open source maintainers, contributors and enthusiasts to discuss difficult questions around running an open source tool. Like:
- How does it support itself financially?
- How do you decide what belongs in an open source offering vs what should be commercial/paid?
- Why do we create open source tools in the first place?
- What are the pros and cons of having open source tools in an AI world?
- How do we build businesses around open source tools?
- How do we use open source tools to support businesses?
Trisha Gee
Trisha Gee is a Java Champion, author, and internationally recognised speaker who has spent over 20 years building software and helping developers build it better. From high-performance financial systems to developer tools, she brings hands-on experience and a clear, practical perspective on what actually makes teams effective, and how engineering organisations build better software.
She is the co-author of Head First Java and Getting to Know IntelliJ IDEA, and her talks, articles, and videos are widely used by developers to navigate complex topics and improve how they work. She focuses on developer productivity, proven engineering practices, and the role of human judgment in an increasingly AI-assisted world.
Trisha got her start in developer communities, founding and supporting user groups and engaging directly with developers. She continues to champion community-led learning, inclusive practices, and the idea that great software comes from people, not just tools.
She is the co-author of Head First Java and Getting to Know IntelliJ IDEA, and her talks, articles, and videos are widely used by developers to navigate complex topics and improve how they work. She focuses on developer productivity, proven engineering practices, and the role of human judgment in an increasingly AI-assisted world.
Trisha got her start in developer communities, founding and supporting user groups and engaging directly with developers. She continues to champion community-led learning, inclusive practices, and the idea that great software comes from people, not just tools.