Every year, at the end of January, the global open source and open technology community descends on Brussels, on the occasion of the FOSDEM conference. Since 2025, the EU Open Source Week has grown, including OpenForum Europe’s (OFE) flagship event: The EU Open Source Policy Summit, offering a unique opportunity to connect with policymakers, community members, businesses, civil society and developers.
OFE is proud to have been involved in many activities throughout the EU Open Source Week 2026, which featured over 35 events on the official EU Open Source Week platform. To make the week more connected than ever, OFE also launched a Networking Platform, which highlighted all events, increased their visibility, and facilitated connections among many participants.
Now that the EU Open Source Week 2026 has ended, we reflect on a week full of events and activities.
On 28 January, OFE and MEP Michał Kobosko co-hosted a breakfast on a European Union Sovereign Tech Fund (EU-STF) at the European Parliament. We discussed how the open source ecosystem can come together to face maintainers and funding challenges. The discussion was an essential next step in making the EU-STF a reality, and investing into the backbone of Europe’s digital future.
On 28 January, the Open Source Observatory (OSOR) of the European Commission hosted the Community Meetup “From Brussels and Barcelona to Europe: Latest Trends in Open Source Adoption.”, where OFE team member presented recent publications. The event brought together public administration officials, researchers, and the open source community to share insights, showcase best practices, and promote Open Source adoption as a strategy for meeting the challenges of digital transformation. Presentations included updates from the European Commission on recent achievements, ongoing projects, and next steps in its open source journey, as well as contributions from OFE’s Nicholas Gates, Sivan Pätsch, and Éléonore Daxhelet. Moreover, Arnau Monterde Mateo, Director of Participation and Innovation at Barcelona City Council, highlighted the city’s pioneering adoption of the UN Open Source Principles and its approach to local digital governance. By connecting experiences across cities, national administrations, and the Commission, the Meetup offered participants practical guidance, strategic insights, and opportunities to strengthen collaboration in advancing public sector open source adoption across Europe.
On 29 January, the 2nd Annual European Open Source Awards created a unique event in the open source community. Part of a project in which OFE participates, and led by the European Open Source Academy, the ceremony honoured outstanding contributions to Europe’s open source software and hardware ecosystem. It recognised influential leaders in the global open source community and highlighted the growing recognition that open source is a cornerstone of Europe’s digital infrastructure. By shining a light on often-unseen contributors who support Europe’s economic and technological resilience, the Awards aim to shift attitudes, strengthen the ecosystem, foster skills, and support digital sovereignty, across industry, government, and research. The evening concluded with Greg Kroah-Hartman, Fellow at the Linux Foundation, receiving the Prize for Excellence in Open Source, for his lasting impact on the global community.
Congratulations to all the winners listed below:
- Greg Kroah-Hartman, The Linux Foundation, Prize for Excellence in Open Source
- Frank Karlitschek, Nextcloud, Special Recognition for Business and Impact
- Jenny Molloy, University of Cambridge and Open Science Hardware Foundation, Special Recognition for Advocacy and Awareness
- Matt Venn, Tiny Tapeout, Special Recognition for Skills and Education
- Roberto Di Cosmo and Stefano Zacchiroli, Software Heritage, Special Recognition for Community Impact
Take a look at the recording and photos from the ceremony.
On 30 January, OFE hosted its annual EU Open Source Policy Summit, bringing together participants from key Directorates-General of the European Commission , leaders from the open source industry, major IT users, and public administrations. The Summit provided a platform for public and private sector leaders to discuss a central theme: Open source as the foundation of digital sovereignty. This year’s event drew its largest audience to date, reflecting a growing appetite for high-level policy dialogue on the role of open source in shaping the EU’s digital future. A more in-depth analysis of the Summit’s key takeaways will be shared soon.
The Summit was also an opportunity to introduce OFE’s new Executive Director, Laszlo Igneczi. Following the event Laszlo reflected:
“looking back on the Summit, what stood out to me was the broad agreement from speakers in the panels and discussions in the hallway: digital sovereignty will run on open source. The time to take action is now. Speaking to everyone at the Summit showed the commitment, positive energy and unity of the community. I am especially excited to make my contribution to Europe’s future.”
We were also present at FOSDEM ‘26, along with the Open Source Initiative, the Mozilla Foundation, Eclipse Foundation, The Linux Foundation, OpenSSF, and APELL. The seven organisations came together to lead a policy dev room in an amphitheatre with a 250-people capacity at the Université Libre de Bruxelles on 1 February. Throughout the day, 21 different panels or speakers shared insights on topics such as the Digital Omnibus, age verification, engaging with policymakers as civil society, and the CRA. This dev room continued a tradition started at FOSDEM ‘24, bringing together developers and EU lawmakers from the EU institutions to discuss the impact of policymaking on the open source community.
EU Open Source Week 2026 has highlighted the crucial role of collaboration between policymakers, developers, and the open source community in shaping Europe’s digital future. With growing momentum behind initiatives like the EU Sovereign Tech Fund, the expanding adoption of Open Source across European public administrations, and the recognition of the contributors who sustain our ecosystem, the path ahead is clear: a resilient, sovereign, and innovation-driven Europe, with open source as the cornerstone of technological progress.
