Members Newsletter – March 2024
The evolution of the Open Source AI Definition continues, and draft v.0.0.6 is now live and open for public comments. This draft contains one major change in the section “What is open source AI,” introducing the requirement to have access to the “preferred form to make modifications.” This change was made after working groups analyzed four machine learning systems and established a list of default required components to make modifications to an AI system, specifically indicating that the original training datasets are not a required component. This assumption needs to be tested with real-life examples of AI systems, which is the next step in the process. Your comments are welcome and encouraged.
You can review the release roadmap, join a public forum and stay engaged by visiting the weekly summaries and bi-weekly town hall meeting notes.
Also, voting is still open for the OSI Board election until March 18 at 5:00 pm GMT (10:00 am PST). “Meet the candidate” pages have been set up for Individual and Affiliate candidates. As a full individual member or affiliate of OSI, you have voting rights and your vote matters!
Stefano Maffulli
Executive Director, OSI
I hold weekly office hours on Fridays with OSI members: book time if you want to chat about OSI’s activities, if you want to volunteer or have suggestions.
News from the OSI
NTIA engages civil society on questions of open foundation models for AI, hears benefits of openness in the public interest
From the Policy and standards program
OSI shares key takeaways from a recent listening session of the National Telecommunications and Information Agency conducted with Civil Society organizations about the benefits and risks associated with offering wide availability of model weights and other components of open and closed foundation models. Read more.
New risk assessment framework offers clarity for open AI models
From the Policy and standards program
The marginal risk associated with open foundation models has been clarified in a recent position paper, addressing a contentious debate in the AI community. Read more.
A candid conversation on The Changelog Podcast about defining Open Source AI, and what is really at stake
From the Advocacy and outreach program
Listen to The Changelog podcast discussing the work of the OSI, especially toward a formal Definition of Open Source AI. Read more.
Changelog: What exactly is Open Source AI?
Stefano Maffulli was recently invited to join hosts Adam Stacoviak and Jerod Santo on The Changelog podcast. The Changelog features deep technical reviews and conversations about the most recent news in the world of software. Listen to the podcast.
Three perspectives from FOSS Backstage
From the Legal and licensing program
FOSS Backstage fosters discussions around three complementary perspectives: a) community health and growth, b) project governance and sustainability, and c) supply chain compliance and security. Read more.
ClearlyDefined at the ORT Community Days
From the Legal and licensing program
Once again Bosch’s campus in Berlin received ORT Community Days, the annual event organized by the OSS Review Toolkit (ORT) community. ORT is an Open Source suite of tools to automate software compliance checks. Read more.
Modernized, streamlined, and fediverse-friendly: OpenSource.org is fully migrated and ready to connect!
From the OSI Website
Two years ago, we started migrating our website from Drupal to WordPress. We knew it wasn’t going to be a quick weekend project, but more of a journey. Today, we celebrate the final leg of this journey – merging our blog back into the main site, creating a unified online experience for our community. Read more.
OSI in the news
CISA Announces New Efforts to Help Secure Open Source Ecosystem
OSI at CISA
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) concluded a two-day Open Source Software (OSS) Security Summit convening OSS community leaders and announced key actions to help secure the open source ecosystem. Recognizing that OSS underpins the essential services and functions of modern life, the Summit sought to catalyze progress in advancing security of this critical ecosystem. Read more.
Adapting the Definition of Open Source to AI: the Quest for the Holy Grail
OSI at the Linux Foundation
In December 2023, the authors of this blog, David Edelsohn and Ofer Hermoni, had an enriching opportunity to attend a thought-provoking session at the AI.Dev event, titled “Towards the Definition of Open Source AI,” moderated by the insightful Mer Joyce and Ruth Suehle. The authors and other AI and open-source professionals joined together to create an initial proposal for the definition of Open Source AI. Read more.
Open vs Closed Source AI: Key Differences & Impact Explained
OSI at Editoralge
Open source AI, where the source code is publicly available for use, modification, and distribution, encourages innovation by allowing developers to build upon existing algorithms and models. In contrast, closed-source AI restricts the source code to private use, with only the owning company having the ability to make changes. Read more.
OSI affiliates in the news
Introducing the Columbia Convening on Openness and AI
Mozilla at the Mozilla Blog
We brought together experts to tackle a critical question: What does openness mean for AI, and how can it best enable trustworthy and beneficial AI? Read more.
Jim Zemlin and the Linux Foundation share not-so-secret open-source sauce
Linux Foundation at ZDNet
Today, the Linux Foundation oversees not only Linux but also more than a thousand other open-source programs. Read more.
OpenSSF Supports White House’s Efforts to Build More Secure and Measurable Software
OpenSSF at the OpenSSF Blog
The US Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD) report Back to the Building Blocks: A Path Toward Secure and Measurable Software, was released today. The report provides valuable insights into strategies to improve software security. This paper emphasizes the importance of proactive measures in mitigating vulnerabilities by examining pivotal principles such as memory safety, measurements, and metrics to help enhance software security. The OpenSSF supports efforts like this from the public sector, which improve the security of open source software. Read more.
OSS leaders detail commitments to bolster software security
Python Software Foundation and Rust Foundation at ComputerWeekly
CISA has announced a number of actions to help secure the global open source ecosystem, as leading package repositories including the Python and Rust foundations advance their own initiatives. Read more.
Upcoming events
SCALE 21x
March 14-17, 2024 – Pasadena, California
SCaLE is the largest community-run open-source and free software conference in North America. It is held annually in the greater Los Angeles area. Read more.
Open Source AI Definition Town Hall
March 22, 2024 – Online
Join Stefano Maffulli, Executive Director at the Open Source Initiative to hear the latest news, and comment on the drafts of the Open Source AI Definition. Read more.
Open Source Summit NA
Apr 16-18, 2024 – Seattle, Washington
Open Source Summit is the premier event for open source developers, technologists, and community leaders to collaborate, share information, solve problems, and gain knowledge, furthering open source innovation and ensuring a sustainable open source ecosystem. It is the gathering place for open-source code and community contributors. Read more.
The Free Software Legal and Licensing Workshop 2024
Apr 17-19, 2024 – Gothenburg, Sweden
The Free Software Legal and Licensing Workshop (also known as the LLW) is organized every year by the FSFE to allow legal experts to discuss legal issues and best practices surrounding Free Software licenses. Read more.
Thanks to our sponsors
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