Call for Devrooms for IndiaFOSS 2025

[Shree_Kumar]

IndiaFOSS 2025 is a two day celebration of everything in and around FOSS, happening on 20th and 21st September 2025. This is the 5th edition of the event, expected to draw an estimated 2500 attendees including developers, students, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and volunteers.

This edition of the conference will feature devrooms - an exciting idea that originated from the community itself (this discussion started it. Please post questions regarding this call for devrooms in that thread itself). Devrooms are essentially half day mini-conference tracks (3 hours programme duration) inside the conference. The idea is that this puts more of the conference contents in the community’s hands. This is modelled loosely on devrooms that FOSSDEM conference has. During the conference, Devrooms will run in parallel with the main conference.

Devrooms may be proposed by a self organizing group in the community. Devrooms are based on topics relevant to a broader subset of the community, or a special interest topic, etc. Devroom proposals are being solicited in advance. The conference committee will review and select 4 devroom proposals.

The call for proposals (CFP) for IndiaFOSS 2025 will be a generic CFP that will mention and link to separate CFPs for each selected devroom. The conference talk submission page will accept talk proposals both for the main track, as well as selected devrooms (these will show up as “tracks”). Anybody may propose sessions for any track.

Each devroom must be represented by two managers (2 for redundancy). These managers are responsible for the following:

• Finalize a CFP for their devroom.
• Circulate the CFP in their community or interest group. The Programme Committee (composed of the co-chairs of the conference) shall let selected devrooms know when to do this.
• Review and finalize proposals to create the devroom programme, in a timely manner. We recommend starting rolling reviews 2 weeks after the CFP is issued.
• Work with the Programme Committee to finalize the schedule.
• Run the devroom according to the schedule during the conference

Devroom managers may also rope in additional volunteers to help review proposals. During the conference, devrooms shall be recorded and live-streamed. Each devroom may also have up-to two volunteers to help with the logistics of running the devroom, including:

• Coordinate with selected speakers to ensure everything runs smoothly and on time
• Introduce speakers
• Work with video recording and live streaming POCs
• Work with other conference volunteers for important tasks (beginning of sessions, administrative stuff, etc)

Each devroom shall be held in a 35 seater room.

Devroom Proposals

Devroom proposals must be posted as a response to this discussion thread. The person who posts a devroom proposal will be deemed the primary contact for the devroom, and also a devroom manager.

A devroom proposal must include the following:

• Devroom title
• Details of two managers
  • Name of each manager
  • Short intro and reason/motivation to run the devroom. Please highlight any prior experience running/involvement in events or conferences
• Some indication that the devroom would be able to generate enough content for the entire 3 hour slot (“proof of feasibility”)
• Number of volunteers requested for the devroom
  • Proposal reviews (max 2). Names of the reviewers need not be published on the forum at this time to preserve anonymity, but the Managers must have decided the names by the time they propose the devroom.
  • Logistics volunteers for the devroom (max 2). Names can be decided later.
• CFP for the devroom talks. CFP must include the scope of the talks recommended for this devroom.

FOSDEM 2025 - Schedule has some ideas for devrooms.

Key Dates

• Call for devrooms opens on : March 1st 2025
• Last date to submit devroom proposals : April 7th, 2025 March 31th, 2025
• Intimation of devroom proposal acceptance: April 15th, 2025
• Devrooms to start circulating their CFP : May 1st, 2025 (Same date as CFP open for IndiaFOSS IndiaFOSS CFP may be issued earlier than this; we’ll recirculate CFP with Devroom CFPs when those are ready)
• CFP (session submission) end date : June 7th, 2025 June 30th, 2025
• Devrooms to finish reviews and finalize sessions for their devroom : July 15th, 2025

[rahulporuri]

FOSS in Science

Managers : @rahulporuri and Jaidev Deshpande

Intro

The Scientific community is often considered a passive observer within the broader FOSS community. In our experience, this is far from the truth. Numerous successful FOSS projects originated in the Scientific Community. The “FOSS in Science” devroom enables the Indian scientific community to come together.

Motivation

The SciPy India conference enabled the Scientific Python community in India to come together but after 13 editions the conference was sadly discontinued in 2021. I attempted to reignite this community at a Birds of a Feather session at PyCon India 2023 with Jaidev Deshpande (a regular reviewer of the SciPy India conference). We were successful in bringing together 10+ people for more than 1 hour to discuss how they were using Python in Science & Tech. We sadly weren’t able to replicate this at the 2024 PyCon India.

We believe that there is pent-up demand for such a gathering in the Indian Scientific Community and the devroom will hopefully address this.

Feasibility

SciPy India regularly attracted 100+ audience and 10+ speakers so we believe a 3-hour devroom is easily doable - especially because we’re not limiting the gathering to the Scientific Python community.

Volunteering

We believe that 1 additional reviewer and 1 additional volunteer should be sufficient. Please note that the two devroom managers (including me) will also do reviews and handle on-day logistics (e.g. MC).

CFP

Scope

Please submit proposals that discuss “FOSS in Science”. Please limit the domain of your proposals to “Pure Science” e.g. Astronomy, Biology, …, Zoology. Meta proposals on “FOSS in Science” are also welcome e.g. roadblocks/challenges regarding FOSS adoption in Science, lessons learnt from training Scientists to adopt FOSS, Open Science.

Selection/review

Crude order of preference for proposals (first is highest preference)

• FOSS creation for Science in India
• Meta-proposals on FOSS in Science from those with hands-on experience
• Significant* hands-on FOSS usage in a Scientific domain in India
• FOSS in a Scientific domain coming from the inexperienced
• All other proposals

** Significant refers to anyone with greater than 1-2 years of daily hands-on experience with the FOSS software. In practice, this translates to graduate students being given preference over bachelors/masters students.

[nikochiko]

I’d love people from academia to come in and talk about the lack of FOSS too. For example, I got to hear recently that NIH/NCBI (which maintain databases & tooling for bioinformatics) were affected due to funding cuts from the new US gov and their important tools were down. FOSS could provide helpful alternatives where such gaps exist

[amit_pundir]

Devroom Title:
Android Open Source Project (AOSP) Devroom

Devroom Managers:
Sumit Semwal and Amit Pundir
Both of us are part of the organizing team of Android Micro-conference at yearly Linux Plumbers conference. We were also part of the aosp-devs.org team which helped run the AOSP devroom at FOSDEM '25.

Short intro and reason/motivation to run the devroom:
AOSP is an important part of the FOSS ecosystem. It is the most widely used open-source operating system, yet its development is often perceived as inaccessible compared to traditional Linux distributions. AOSP devroom will provide developers, maintainers and enthusiasts an open and collaborative space for discussions that are otherwise fragmented across forums, mailing lists, and private groups.

Feasibility:
India has a large number of developers working on or around AOSP-based projects. Several custom ROMs, kernel projects and XDA/LineageOS forums have Indian developers as core contributors.
Many Indian startups and companies customize AOSP for industrial, enterprise and automotive use.
AOSP is a great way to learn operating system concepts, especially for students and developers interested in systems programming and kernel development.
So we are hopeful that if we promote it well, then the AOSP devroom can attract a good crowd of AOSP contributors or enthusiasts, whether as speakers or attendees.

Number of volunteers requested for the devroom:
Proposal reviewers: 2
Logistics volunteers: 2

CFP:

Scope:
Anything AOSP.

For the AOSP devroom, we will look at the AOSP topics that appeal to both beginner and advanced developers. Topics including, but not limited to:

• AOSP Bring-Up & Porting
• Android Common Kernel
• Android Bootloaders
• AOSP community and ecosystem
• Deep dive into AOSP framework/internals and Security
• Performance optimization and debugging stories
• AOSP tutorials, tips-n-tricks
• Headless Android
• Android Automotive

Time slot wise, we are looking for talks that are either:

• 10+5 min (lightning talk)
• 20+5 min (normal session)

[akshay_k.a]

Building FOSS Culture: The Role of Tech Communities in Open Source & Student Growth

Managers: @YourName and [Second Manager’s Name]

Intro

Tech communities play a crucial role in bridging the gap between students and the open-source world. Through structured mentorship, collaborative projects, and real-world exposure, these communities have empowered thousands of students to become active FOSS contributors. This devroom will highlight the impact of student-driven tech communities on open-source adoption and skill development.

Motivation

Student-led tech communities have created a vibrant ecosystem that nurtures developers and introduces them to open-source projects. Events, hackathons, and community-driven mentorship have helped many students contribute to FOSS.

To provide a broader perspective, this devroom will feature experienced community leaders who have successfully built sustainable open-source learning models. Through discussions, workshops, and talks, we aim to inspire and equip the next generation of FOSS contributors in India.

Feasibility

Various student-driven initiatives have demonstrated that:

There is strong interest in FOSS and community-driven learning.

Speakers and mentors are willing to contribute their expertise.

A 3-hour devroom is feasible, as similar events have sustained engagement for longer durations.

Volunteering

We believe that 1 additional reviewer and 1 additional volunteer should be sufficient. Both devroom managers will also assist with proposal reviews and logistics.

CFP

Scope

This devroom welcomes proposals that discuss:

The role of tech communities in onboarding students into FOSS.

Success stories of students contributing to open-source.

Challenges in sustaining and scaling student-led FOSS communities.

Strategies for integrating open-source learning in academic institutions.

Community-driven mentorship models for skill development.

Selection/Review

Crude order of preference for proposals (highest preference first):

1. Successful student-led open-source projects from community-driven initiatives.

2. Mentorship models that have helped students transition from learners to contributors.

3. Meta-proposals on how institutions and communities can collaborate to grow FOSS adoption.

4. Case studies on tech communities actively driving FOSS participation.

5. Other proposals that align with the overarching theme.

This devroom will bring together students, mentors, and FOSS advocates to explore scalable models for community-driven learning and open-source contributions.

[Shree_Kumar]

@rahulporuri @amit_pundir @akshay_k.a thanks for your early proposals! I have a small update. We are changing the process a wee bit compared to what we conveyed earlier. The 2025 conference page is active. There are a lot of queries about when we will start accepting talk proposals. In response to that, we are looking to issue the CFP for the main track soon (i.e. much before we finalize devrooms). Once we select devrooms, we will circulate the call for proposals again (including devroom CFPs), and inform everyone of the selected devrooms for better awareness. From that that point on, anybody would be able to submit talks to the devrooms as well as the main track. We will also extend the last date for submitting devrooms by a week. I will be editing the call for devrooms a bit to reflect this, with the new dates.

[Balu_B]

Building the Future of Open-Source Hardware

Devroom Managers

• Balu
• Amit
• Kailash
• Harish

We are the core members of Absurd Industries, a passionate open hardware community dedicated to getting more people to build things. Since 2023, we’ve been holding monthly meetups, bringing together makers from all walks of life. Our meetups aren’t just about theory—they’re about making. We’ve hosted hands-on workshops on building macropads, ePaper wrist watches, lightsabers, taught the fundamentals of Arduino and other microcontrollers, and even dedicated an entire session to the humble screw (because every great project needs solid fasteners!). At our core, we believe in lowering the barrier to DIY.

---

Proof of Feasibility

We believe the Open Hardware Devroom will easily sustain a 3-hour session because:

Our community isn’t just large—it’s active, engaged, and filled with makers, tinkerers, and innovators. Given how vibrant and hands-on our members are, we are confident that a call for proposals (CFP) within our community will generate a strong response with high-quality submissions. We’ll do personal reach-outs to members of the community who are working on interesting projects to present their work.

We’ve already seen this in action. The first-ever Open Hardware team meetup, a collaboration between Absurd Industries and FOSS United Bangalore, proved that our community is eager to participate. Once we put out a CFP within our circles, the majority of submissions came directly from our members, and even the final selection was community-driven—ensuring that the talks reflected the interests and expertise of the participants.

---

Short Introduction & Motivation

Open-source hardware is a vital but often underrepresented part of the FOSS ecosystem. While open software has seen widespread adoption, open hardware faces unique challenges, including accessibility, manufacturing constraints, and licensing concerns.

The Open Hardware Devroom aims to bring together developers, makers, and researchers working in open-source electronics, embedded systems, and DIY hardware. Through this space, we hope to:

• Showcase real-world open hardware projects and their impact on industries like IoT, automation, and education.
• Discuss the challenges of hardware openness, from licensing to supply chain difficulties.
• Facilitate knowledge-sharing on tools, workflows, and best practices for designing and manufacturing open hardware.
• Strengthen the Indian open hardware community, providing a platform for collaboration and networking.

---

Number of Volunteers Requested

• Proposal Reviewers: members from within our community + 1 member from FOSS United.
• Logistics Volunteers: 2 volunteers to assist with managing the devroom on the day of the event.
• Devroom Managers (Balu, Amit, Kailash and Harish) will also help with reviews and logistics.

---

Call for Proposals (CFP)

Scope of Talks

We invite proposals that focus on open-source hardware development, community-driven innovation, and real-world applications. Suggested topics include (but are not limited to):

• DIY and Maker Projects: Personal and community-driven open hardware initiatives. (e.g. T1E: ePaper Watch)
• Open-Source PCB Design & Tools: KiCad, EasyEDA, LibrePCB, and related workflows. (e.g. Cory Dora: Open Source Macropad)
• Hardware Security & Trust: Ensuring transparency and security in open hardware.
• Open-Source Silicon & FPGAs: RISC-V, open ASICs, and FPGA toolchains. (e.g. Open-Source Chips)
• Challenges in Open Hardware Adoption: Manufacturing, and ecosystem barriers. (e.g. Building Open Hardware with FOSS)
• Community-Driven Hardware Development: Collaborative models for hardware innovation. (e.g. Building an Open-Source Supersaber)

We welcome both technical talks and practical workshops, with preferred durations of:

• 10+5 min (Lightning Talks)
• 20+5 min (Standard Sessions)
• 30+5 min ( Fireside chat)

[Sanjay_Prasad]

Devroom Title:

AGI-Chan: Open-Source AI Companions & Assistants

Devroom Managers:

Sanjay and Souhruddh
Both of us are deeply interested in the intersection of AI and human interaction. We want to explore how open-source AI agents can be more than just tools—how they can interact with humans in creative, productive, and even entertaining ways. Our goal is to provide an open space for developers, researchers, and enthusiasts to share, discuss, and showcase AI assistants and conversational agents in a fun, engaging manner.

Short intro and reason/motivation to run the devroom:

The rise of AI assistants and chatbots has transformed how humans interact with technology. From coding helpers to AI companions, the potential of these systems is immense. However, most discussions around AI assistants remain technical or research-heavy. With AGI-Chan, we want to create a devroom that explores AI agents through a human-centered, interactive, and experimental lens.

AGI-Chan is not about AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) in the traditional sense—it’s about how open-source AI agents can interact with people, learn from them, and even be fun to use. Whether it’s AI personalities, productivity tools, gaming chatbots, or interactive experiences, this devroom is a space for all things AI and human interaction.

Feasibility:

• There is a growing open-source AI ecosystem, with projects like Open Assistant, LM Studio, and fine-tuned LLMs.
• Many developers work on self-hosted AI assistants, AI-powered workflows, and automation tools.
• Interest in human-AI collaboration is increasing, with many researchers and developers focusing on LLM customization, character AI, and chatbot dynamics.
• AI-powered companions, agents, and bots are becoming a fun and experimental space in open-source development.
• AI and anime have an overlapping fanbase, making this an exciting and engaging topic to explore.

With proper promotion and outreach, we believe AGI-Chan can attract a diverse crowd, from AI researchers and bot developers to anime fans and indie hackers.

Number of volunteers requested for the devroom:

• Proposal reviewers: 2 (Sanjay and Souhruddh)
• Logistics volunteers: 2 (Joel and Sanjay)
• Other volunteers: 2 (Tharang, Brijesh and Amit)

Call for Proposals (CFP):

Scope:

Exploring Open-Source AI Assistants & Human-AI Interaction

For the AGI-Chan devroom, we are looking for talks and presentations that explore how AI agents interact with humans in unique and engaging ways. Topics include but are not limited to:

• Building Open-Source AI Assistants – Frameworks, models, and open-source projects.
• AI Personalities & AGI-Chan – Giving AI assistants unique, human-like behavior.
• Productivity AI vs. Entertainment AI – Differences in design and purpose.
• Self-Hosted AI Agents – Running local LLMs (Tauri, LM Studio, GPT-based tools).
• Live AI Bot Demos – Showcasing real AI assistants in action.
• AI in Anime & Sci-Fi – How pop culture envisions AI companionship.
• AI Safety & Ethics in Social AI – Avoiding bias, toxicity, and unwanted behaviors in AI chatbots.
• Hacking AI Assistants – Fun modifications and experimental use cases.
• Game AI & Roleplaying Bots – AI as interactive storytelling partners.

Talk Formats:

We are accepting talks in two formats:

• 10+5 min (Lightning Talk) – Short, quick AI demos or fun experiments.
• 20+5 min (Normal Session) – Deep dives into AI assistant building, fine-tuning, and real-world applications.

Fun & Interactive Sessions:

We want AGI-Chan to be an engaging, hands-on devroom. Some additional planned activities include:

• Live AI Bot Arena – Pit different open-source AI assistants against each other.
• Build-Your-Own AI Companion – Workshops on customizing LLMs.
• “Meet AGI-Chan” Session – Interact with a unique AI assistant designed for the event.
• “Best AI Chat Experience” Contest – Fun challenges to test AI creativity and personality.

This devroom is for everyone—whether you’re an AI researcher, a chatbot developer, or just someone curious about how AI can interact with people in fun and unexpected ways.

[Anwesha_Sen1]

Geopolitics and Policy in FOSS

Managers: @shobhankita_reddy and @Anwesha_Sen1

Introduction

The intersection of Geopolitics and Policy with Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) is often overlooked in the broader discussions within the FOSS community. However, geopolitical factors and policy decisions play a significant role in shaping the growth, sustainability, and accessibility of FOSS projects worldwide. The “Geopolitics and Policy in FOSS” devroom seeks to create a platform for discussing how international relations, government policies, and geopolitical challenges influence the development and adoption of open-source software, especially in emerging economies like India.

Motivation

In recent years, we have seen an increasing trend of government initiatives, both in developed and developing nations, to promote the adoption of open-source software as part of their national strategies. Yet, the adoption of FOSS is not merely a technical issue—it is deeply intertwined with political agendas, international collaborations, trade agreements, and data sovereignty concerns. For instance, some countries have adopted open-source as part of their digital sovereignty agendas, while others have seen political or economic barriers to adopting these tools.

However, these discussions have been sporadic, often siloed into either technical or policy-focused forums, with little crossover between these critical conversations. The “Geopolitics and Policy in FOSS” devroom intends to fill this gap by bringing together enthusiasts from diverse backgrounds including political science, international relations, economics, and open-source development to examine the impact of global politics on FOSS.

Feasibility

The issue of geopolitics and policy in FOSS is a complex and multifaceted subject that requires a multi-stakeholder approach. There is significant interest in understanding how global policies—such as data protection laws, software patents, trade barriers, and government-driven initiatives—are shaping the landscape of open-source software.

Given that FOSS adoption is a global phenomenon, with active communities in the US, Europe, and Asia, this devroom has the potential to attract a broad spectrum of participants, ranging from policy experts, government representatives, to FOSS developers. We will also look at domestic and regional policies on FOSS in India and its implementation in the public and private sectors. With the involvement of experienced FOSS community members from diverse sectors, we anticipate a high level of engagement during a 3-hour devroom session, where we can address key policy challenges and examine successful strategies from different geopolitical contexts.

Volunteering

The devroom will be led by two managers, who will also handle the logistics and moderation of the sessions. To ensure smooth coordination and effective review of proposals, we believe that 1-2 additional reviewers and 2 volunteers will be sufficient to manage the event. The volunteers will help with on-site logistics, and the reviewers will assist in evaluating the quality and relevance of the submissions.

CFP

Scope

We encourage submissions that examine the intersection of Geopolitics and Policy with Free and Open Source Software. Topics may include, but are not limited to:

• Government policies on open-source software adoption in various countries
• Impact of global trade policies on the availability and development of FOSS
• Geopolitical tensions and their effects on software development (e.g., sanctions, open-source licensing)
• FOSS and its implications for digital sovereignty and data protection
• Open-source software in international collaborations or diplomacy
• Policy frameworks to support the development and sustainability of FOSS
• Regional case studies: FOSS adoption in developing nations and its political context
• Ethical considerations in FOSS: Data privacy, surveillance, and international cooperation

We welcome contributions from policy experts, FOSS developers, academics, and industry professionals who are engaged in the creation, implementation, or study of FOSS in a geopolitical or policy context.

Selection/Review

Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria (listed in order of priority):

1. Contributions that examine geopolitical implications of FOSS in specific countries or regions
2. Policy-driven proposals that explore the challenges and opportunities in adopting FOSS in governmental and corporate settings
3. Case studies on the real-world impacts of FOSS adoption in a geopolitical context
4. Meta-proposals on policy or strategic issues related to FOSS
5. Proposals from individuals with significant hands-on experience in both policy and FOSS development
6. All other relevant proposals

Additional Notes:

• Proposals that bring together cross-disciplinary expertise (e.g., collaboration between FOSS developers and policy experts) will be highly valued.
• Proposals from individuals or organizations involved in governmental policy-making or international collaborations related to FOSS will be prioritized.
• Presenters are encouraged to offer practical solutions and policy frameworks for overcoming barriers in FOSS adoption due to geopolitical constraints.

We hope this devroom can foster a deeper understanding of how global geopolitics and national policies shape the open-source ecosystem and, in turn, offer practical insights into fostering an inclusive and sustainable FOSS community worldwide.

This proposal has been drafted with some inputs from ChatGPT.

[Shree_Kumar]

Update : The last date for proposing devrooms is being moved by a week, We’ll be accepting proposals till April 7th. Keep the proposals coming, folks !

[Soham_Kulkarni]

RISC-V for all

Managers: @Soham_Kulkarni, @Mohammad_Ahmad @girish_sharma and Hemsharan Gupta

Introduction

RISC-V is an open-standard instruction set architecture (ISA) that’s rapidly transforming the semiconductor industry. It’s an effective alternative to proprietary ISAs like x86 and ARM. Its open nature allows for customization without incurring expensive licensing fees. We wish to organise a 3 hour devroom which also focuses on the software aspects of RISC-V, alongside of the conventional VLSI perspective. For people with growing interest and looking to dive deeper, we’re willing to bring in experts who can address any queries attendees may have.

Proposed Flow

1. 1x25 min (+4 min buffer) keynote (Introduction to RISC-V, invited expert talk)
2. 1x35 min (+5 min buffer) Hands on workshop (CFP)
3. 3x25 min (+10 min buffer) Technical talks (CFP)
4. 3x07 min (+05 min buffer) Lightning talks (Projects) (CFP)

Motivation

RISC-V represents a significant paradigm shift in computer architecture as an open source standard instruction set (ISA). Despite growing industry adoption, the community still lacks centralized collaborative spaces for developers. Its significance to FOSS extends beyond licensing - the base RV321/RV641 instruction sets coupled with standard extensions, enable unprecedented hardware customization while maintaining software compatibility. Newcomers face significant barriers to entry when starting RISC-V projects due to limited awareness and resources. Many potential contributors struggle to conceptualize practical applications for RISC-V technology. We believe a dedicated RISC-V conference would connect India’s FOSS community with academia and industry experts, lowering these barriers and inspiring innovative projects through knowledge sharing and collaboration.

Feasibility

The RISC-V ecosystem in India shows remarkable growth through various events [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] which attracted 500+ participants. Initiatives from IIT Madras, TATA and Intel further demonstrate strong interest in open source hardware. This growing network of developers, projects and collaborative efforts across organizations confirms the feasibility of the RISC-V devroom.

CFP

Due to the diverse nature of the topics we are currently planning on approaching multiple professionals as proposal reviewers. We will finalise 2 experts from the following list:

1. Dr. Aloknath De
2. Dr. Sumit Kumar Mandal
3. G S Madhusan
4. Lavanya Jagdeswaran
5. Steve Hoover
6. Daniel Magnum
7. Dr. Satya Gupta
8. Aakarsh Vinay
9. … (WIP)

Scope

We invite proposals from the following domains, however as a thumb rule, anything related to RISC-V is encouraged. This scope applies to the workshop, technical talks, and lightning project talks.

1. Toolchain developers: We aim to invite contributors and maintainers from major projects ported to RISC-V, such as Linux, AOSP, LLVM, and GCC.
2. Open Source EDA (Eletronic design automation): Designing good open hardware needs good FOSS tooling. Developers and users are best suited to explain their contributions or share their perspectives on open-source EDA flows.
3. Hobby Projects: We wish to provide a platform for tinkerers who have built stuff with RISC-V (eg. Warehouse automation using RISC-V , Home Automation Using VisionFive) to showcase their projects
4. Academia: We would like to invite students and researchers with a background in RISC-V to present their projects, papers, etc. This embodies the original spirit of RISC-V, which was a project to teach college students computer architecture
5. Industry Applications: Startups and established companies can discuss how RISC-V is making a real world impact.
6. Specific topics:

• Hardware-software codesign
• Open-Source EDA (Yosys, OpenROAD, EasyEDA, Verilator, etc.)
• Custom Extensions for RISC-V
• Experimenting with RISC-V (eg. GitHub - ading2210/linuxpdf: Linux running inside a PDF file via a RISC-V emulator)
• RISC-V in real world products
  • Edge devices
  • high performance computing
  • Coprocessors
  • Security
  • Networking

Volunteering

Since the FOSS Club SIT is administered by students, it would take more than two managers for proper coordination and communication. The conference anticipates high attendee count and therefore would require extra managers to make sure everything goes as planned, other managers will assist with outreach, technical session planning, community involvement, and logistical coordination.

Devroom managers

Name	Role	Prior Experience in Events/Conferences
Soham Kulkarni	Club Lead, FOSS Club SIT	- Organized FOSSHack Pune 2024 and monthly meetups (Pune) - Volunteer at IndiaFOSS 2023 and PuneFOSS 2024
Sharan Gupta	Technical Lead, FOSS Club SIT	- Organized Python Workshop (50+ attendees) - Organized IoT Workshop (100+ attendees)
Mohammad Ahmad	Events Lead, FOSS Club SIT	- Organized FOSSHack Pune 2024 - Organized SymbiTech 2024, 2025
Girish Sharma	Events Team, FOSS Club SIT	- Organized workshop with 50+ attendees - Organized school events with 250+ attendees

Number of volunteers

Proposal reviewers: 2
Logistic volunteers: 2

Additional Notes

We would like to partner with:

• IIT-M: RISC-V founding member
• IISc Bangalore: Active in RISC-V research
• HyprThrd: Microarchitecture club from PES-Bangalore

Optionally with:

• vlsisystemdesign.com: RISC-V training
• IEEE Bangalore: As RISC-V is a very active research domain
• RISC-V startups (InCore, Vyoma, SiFive, etc.)

[theavirajsaxena]

FOSS in AI

---

Managers

@Tablaster and Diva Gupta

---

Intro

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the world, and Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) is playing a pivotal role in making it more accessible, ethical, and collaborative. From open-source machine learning frameworks to responsible data governance, the AI landscape has been significantly shaped by FOSS contributions.

The “FOSS in AI” devroom aims to bring together developers, researchers, students, and enthusiasts who are contributing to or using FOSS in AI-related domains. It will serve as a platform to discuss the present and future of open AI tools and models, showcase community-driven projects, and explore challenges around ethics, transparency, and accessibility in AI.

---

Motivation

In our regular FOSS United Lucknow meetups and discussions with students, researchers, and engineers in Lucknow and beyond, we’ve seen immense curiosity and ongoing work in the AI space—especially with FOSS tools.

Despite this, most AI discussions are happening in closed rooms, with very little spotlight on the open-source side of it. This devroom aims to open those rooms and bring visibility to the vibrant open-source AI community in India.

Feasibility

The open-source AI space is booming globally, and India is no exception. With the rise of developer-friendly AI tools and the increasing focus on transparency and reproducibility, the demand for conversations around FOSS in AI is growing rapidly.

There is a vast and active community of contributors and users of open-source AI libraries. Many of these projects have Indian contributors, and several AI startups and research labs in India are building on or contributing to FOSS.

In our interactions within FOSS United and at local meetups, we’ve already seen considerable interest in AI.

A 3-hour devroom is easily feasible because:

• We have access to a growing network of AI enthusiasts and students who are actively working on or with open-source AI tools.
• The diversity of use cases—from accessibility tools to ethical AI—ensures a rich and balanced agenda.
• The topic resonates with developers across levels—from students learning to fine-tune models with open datasets, to professionals contributing upstream to major OSS projects.

This devroom will not only attract high-quality proposals but also facilitate meaningful discussions around the future of AI through the lens of FOSS.

---

Volunteering

We will need:

• 1 additional proposal reviewer (besides the managers)
• 1 logistics volunteer to assist with on-day tasks

---

CFP (Call for Proposals)

Scope

We welcome talk proposals that explore the intersection of FOSS and Artificial Intelligence. Suggested themes include (but are not limited to):

• Open-source AI/ML frameworks and models
• Community-driven AI datasets and benchmarks
• Ethics and transparency in open-source AI
• Policy and governance around FOSS in AI
• Personal experiences contributing to open source AI projects
• Case studies of AI-powered solutions built with FOSS

We also encourage meta-discussions, such as:

• Challenges in building open-source AI communities
• Democratizing AI through open education and tooling
• Future of open-source large language models (LLMs)

---

Selection Criteria

Here’s a rough order of preference (highest first):

1. FOSS AI Projects built or maintained in India
2. Proposals from contributors with significant hands-on experience (2+ years or substantial open-source involvement)
3. Meta-talks from practitioners who’ve faced challenges in FOSS AI adoption
4. Beginner-level contributions or experiments in FOSS AI

[Denny_George]

Devroom title

Co-creating the Fediverse

Managers

Denny George and Kaustubha Kalidindi

Introduction

We work at Tattle Civic Tech, where we build open source software and datasets to research and respond to Online Harms like misinformation, online abuse, deepfakes etc. While we build tools that help users exercise more agency over their online experiences on social media, we have been inspired by and continue to learn from the lessons of decentralized social media projects like the Fediverse.

At present, users are experiencing first-hand the consequences of takeover of centralized social media and unilateral decisions reflecting shifting priorities of leadership. Concurrently, we have observed that the ActivityPub protocol is experiencing increased adoption by FOSS projects (Ghost) and traditionally centralised social media like Threads and Substack. The time seems ripe to bring various stake holders in one room and co-create a desirable future.

Prior experience:

• Conducted Misinfocon India in 2023, and 2025
• Conceptualized and Organized a track on “Decentralized Networks” at Misinfocon India 2025. This included putting together a 1 hour lightning talk and two 1.5 hour roundtable discussions on building trust in open community projects such as OSM, Channapatna Health Library, and Wikipedia.
• Conducted several co-design workshops and events with students and marginalised groups towards improving online trust and safety in India.

Feasibility

In our experience with Misinfocon India 2025, we were able to put together 4 hours of content on Decentralized Networks. We couldn’t make space for hands on workshops and demonstrations then, which we intend to do with this devroom and those usually take more time. With the breadth of topics to cover with ActivityPub and all developments in the past and future, there is a fair amount of ground to cover in this timeslot.

Volunteering

Proposal review: 2 volunteers
We can organize this from our team + partners if needed
Logistics for the devroom : 2 volunteers
We can organize this from our team if needed

CFP

Our planned breakdown of the devroom is as follows :

Introductions/Onboarding support: 10/15 mins
Lightning Talk: 30 mins
Hands on Workshops: 45 x 2 mins
Demonstrations : 20 x 2 mins

We welcome proposals on the following topics

• Introduction to ActivityPub, Nostr, IndieWeb and/or other decentralized platforms
• Showcasing various Fediverse software and their possibilities
• Hands on training on running a Fediverse software
• Hands on training on building Fediverse software
• Showcase of first hand experience of hosting Fediverse and/or moderating communities
• Building Credibility: Community Notes or Factchecking solutions for the Fediverse
• Co-creating solutions to Trust and Safety challenges in the Fediverse

[grittypuffy]

FOSS and Privacy

---

Managers

@grittypuffy , Kierthana Rajesh, Dikashma Shree Selvakumaran

---

Introduction

Unlike western countries, India hasn’t improved much on privacy front even after Snowden leaks due to lack of awareness & negligence along with FOSS and privacy tools and resources being more geared towards non-Indian audience. The devroom aims to provide a space for the Indian FOSS and privacy enthusiasts to discuss about FOSS and privacy in India.

Motivation

Resources regarding privacy and FOSS has been geared towards non-Indian citizens on the Internet and is fragmented. The devroom aims to provide FOSS and privacy enthusiasts a collaborative space for discussions regarding FOSS adoption and awareness strategies for better privacy in India, best practices and FOSS tools and techniques to enhance privacy for an unified manner that’s relevant to Indians.

Feasibility

Considering growing concerns around data privacy, cybersecurity, and the increasing adoption of FOSS solutions across India and development of Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Bill, adoption of alternative software to major proprietary counterparts for protecting privacy have increased, some major transitions being usage of Signal over WhatsApp since 2021.

Since FOSS tools are generally developed with privacy in mind, several privacy advocates, FOSS enthusiasts and key players can participate in the devroom while also providing space to discuss about alternative, privacy-respecting solutions (hardware and software), policies, techniques to protect one’s privacy, which can extend for 3 hours, considering the hands-on nature of the devroom.

This has been an observation from interactions within FOSFEM and FOSS United’s meetups.

Volunteering

The devroom will be led by 3 managers who will also handle reviewing of proposals and management of event. For ensuring a smooth orchestration and coordination, 2 additional reviewers and 2 volunteers will be sufficient to manage the event.

We have collective experience in organizing events such as FOSS Hack 2025, technical college-level workshops, and organizing events as a part of FOSFEM

CFP (Call for Proposals)

Scope

The devroom welcomes proposals that delves into intersection of FOSS and privacy.

Some of the suggested themes are (but not limited to):

• FOSS, privacy-preserving alternatives to mainstream, proprietary software
• Privacy-focused tools built by communities or hobbyists. Examples include MAT2, SecureDrop, etc.
• Privacy-oriented FOSS integrations for third-party services (libraries, APIs, SDKs, etc.)
• Open-source protocols for security and privacy - Signal, OMEMO, etc.
• Hands-on workshop for using privacy-focused tools

We also encourage meta-discussions pertaining to (but not limited to):

• Future of privacy in India
• Privacy-first approach to development in SMEs and established organizations
• Challenges in adoption and awareness of FOSS and privacy in India
• Legislature for privacy in India

The devroom is structured in the following manner:

1. 2x Session presentation (20+5 min)
2. 1x Hands-on Workshop (45+5 min)
3. 1x Demonstrations presentation (35+5 min)
4. 3x Lightning talk (10+2 min)

Selection criteria

The order of preference (highest first) is listed below:

1. Privacy-focused FOSS projects built or maintained in India
2. Proposals from members active in privacy and FOSS communities (2+ years of involvement)
3. Meta-proposals from individuals with significant contributions to the community (5+ years)
4. Theoretical presentations oriented towards privacy

[Pratik_Parikh]

Devroom Title: Open-Source Observability: Cutting Costs Without Compromising Quality

Managers: Pratik Parikh, Nikita Shinde

Motivation:

Given today’s complex applications and environments, observability is no longer optional, it is foundational. As systems scale in complexity, optimizing and debugging them becomes crucial to ensure reliability and performance.

Open source has led the way in building the tools and standards that power modern observability stacks. From Prometheus and Grafana to OpenTelemetry and Loki, the ecosystem is vibrant, innovative, and community-driven.

We want to host a dev room that shows how free, opensource tools can also replace expensive monitoring solutions, resulting in telemetry, which is cheaper and often more reliable when done correctly.

Given the vast number of tools in the Observability space, it is critical to understand what problem each tool solves, how to use it effectively, balancing insights with costs and share real world stories and implementation ideas.

By the talks of this devroom, we want to exchange knowledge, strengthen the the community’s understanding and inspire the next wave of contributions in the Monitoring and Observability space.

Feasibility:

Monitoring and Observability are foundations of reliability. A devroom on this theme is guarenteed to attract speakers given the vast and active ecosystem of open source tools in this space.

Observability cuts across roles - developers, DevOps, SREs, System architects and everybody benefits from the enhanced system visibility.

Given the vast number of tools, there is a strong possibility of hands on workshops, demos and interactive sessions especially with Prometheus, Opensearch, OpenTelemetry and so on.

Observability has been a consistent theme in conferences like KubeCON, FOSSDEM, DevConf, etc and we can piggyback on this momentum.

One of the managers, Nikita Shinde has been working with organizing Observability meetups in Mumbai and her outreach has confirmed potential speakers across different communities, first time and experienced speakers alike.

Volunteers: Same as managers. We may reach out for an additional volunteer if required.

CFP:

We’re looking for talks that share how open-source observability can be a smart and cost-effective alternative to expensive paid tools. We want real stories, practical advice, and simple steps to help teams make the switch without any the hassle.

Scope of Talks
Here are the five key topics we’re interested in:

1.⁠ ⁠Getting Started with Open-Source Monitoring:
Introduce tools like Prometheus, Grafana, Jaeger, Opensearch etc with simple setup guides and tips for beginners.

2.⁠ ⁠Real-Life Success Stories:
Share your personal or company experiences on how open-source solutions helped improve operations.

3.⁠ ⁠Explaining the Cost:
Discuss how open-source tools can save money compared to commercial software, including a basic cost comparison and impact analysis.

4.⁠ ⁠Step-by-Step Implementation:
Provide clear, practical instructions on how to integrate open-source monitoring into existing systems without major disruptions.

5.⁠ ⁠Tackling Common Challenges:
Talk about the hurdles faced during the transition, and share solutions or workarounds that helped you overcome them.

We welcome both talk proposals and hands-on workshops. Preferred durations are:
•⁠ ⁠10 mins (Lightning Talks)
•⁠ ⁠30 mins (Standard Sessions)
•⁠ ⁠1 hour (Workshops)

[Ashutosh_Pandey]

*Devroom title

Compilers, Programming Languages and Systems.

Details of two managers

@Ashutosh_Pandey : Senior System Software Engineer at AMD.
Pradeep Kumar : Senior System Software Engineer at NVIDIA.

Both of us are co-organizers of the LLVM Social Bangalore Meetup. We are also Co-chairs of the organizing committee of the Innovations In Compiler Technology (IICT) Workshop. LLVM Social Bangalore is the largest Compiler Meetup in the world with 2400+ members, while IICT 2024 is of the only Compiler workshops in India that brings together academicians and Industry experts.

All our meetups are recorded and hosted on our YouTube channel (1.43k subscribers).

Ashutosh has also given a talk at IndiaFOSS 2024 : https://youtu.be/wegPULgNDWI?si=sAGSZ99kyEs-jBNG

Motivation

India (Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune) have thousands of engineers working on Compilers, Programming Languages and Systems. While it might be dwarfed by the number of software engineers working in other areas, it is a very well connected community – Professors, Engineers and students collaborate closely to work on technologies such as LLVM, MLIR, GCC and tools.

LLVM Social Bangalore is a 6 year old Meetup that has a consistent track record of hosting meetups with hundreds of attendees. Our recent meetups in 2025 (at IISc and Nvidia office) were each attended by 120+ individuals with only one week’s worth of notice. We have an active WhatsApp community of 800+ individuals, and if anything, a 35 seater room is entirely too little for us! We have also hosted our own workshop (IICT) with 220+ attendees in 2024.

Some indication that the devroom would be able to generate enough content for the entire 3 hour slot (“proof of feasibility”)

Compilers and Programming Languages is a very wide area, with applications relating to High Performance Computing, AI workloads, Systems engineering etc. In our 2024 IICT Workshop, we had 24 talks in two days (8 hours per day). This was after we pruned the submissions. There are also several other systems meetups in Bangalore (rust Bangalore, Zig Meetup, Bengaluru Systems Meetup), each with many hundreds of followers. 3 hour slot should be easy to fill, we intend to have 10 - 20 minute lighting talks followed by short Q/A sessions for maximum coverage.

Number of volunteers requested for the devroom

2 volunteers should be enough. Someone familiar with the projector/microphone setup. Otherwise the managers are used to Organizing meetups and should be fine on their own.

Proposal reviews (max 2).

We will have 2 reviewers from our community that are NOT the managers themselves.

Logistics volunteers for the devroom (max 2).

1 volunteer is enough.

CFP for the devroom talks

We’re looking for talks that encompass the Compilers, Programming Languages and tools space. While most of these are Open Source by default, for IndiaFOSS we must be explicit : talks on proprietary frameworks where the code is not public under an open source license are NOT allowed.

What we’re looking for -

• Talks related to LLVM, MLIR, GCC and other Compiler frameworks.
• The intersection of Compiler and toolchain technologies with AI, security and other spaces.
• Domain Specific Programming Languages
• Compiler Tools
• Compiler Optimizations
• Just In Time (JIT) compilation
• Hardware/Software Co-design

Talk Duration : 10 - 20 minutes, under exceptional circumstances we may allow 30 minute talks, but no more.

[barkha_manral]

Hi,

Devroom Title: Code. Rights. Sovereignty: Shaping the Global Digital Compact for India and the Global South
Devroom Managers:

1. Barkha Manral, Consultant and Founder of IIRO, Program Coordinator at Local APIGA India
2. Sameer Gahlot, Research Associate, NIXI, Team Lead at Local APIGA india

Short intro and reason/motivation to run the devroom:
The Global Digital Compact (GDC), a UN-led initiative, aims to define shared principles for an open, inclusive, and rights-respecting digital future. But who gets to shape this future?

India, with its growing leadership in digital public infrastructure (like UPI, ONDC, and India Stack) coupled with the Global South present a unique opportunity in ensuring the Compact is rooted in sovereignty, equity, and open source values. This devroom will provide a platform for coders, policy folks, civic tech leaders, youth advocates, and FOSS thinkers to reimagine the digital future—not as passive implementers, but as co-creators of global norms.

This space is a call to action: let’s code our values into the Compact.
Reference Link: https://www.un.org/digital-emerging-technologies/global-digital-compact

Feasibility:

We envision a vibrant 3-hour devroom featuring:

1. Opening Plenary: “The Global Digital Compact: Building from the Ground Up”

With speakers from:

• Digital Public Goods Alliance
• ICANN
• Internet Society (India chapter)
• Foss United(Seeing the technical perspective)

2) Lightning Talks (5–10 mins each):

• Decolonizing the Internet through FOSS
• Digital Public Infrastructure and Global Commons
• Youth-led Visions for Internet Futures
• Open Source and AI Governance

3) Community Dialogue: “Global Frameworks, Local Realities”

A participatory session for students, developers, women in tech, and grassroots innovators to share what an inclusive Compact means for them.We’ve confirmed interest from:

• Youth IGF India
• ISOC Delhi Chapter
• Global Youth IGF(TBC)
• FOSS United members(TBC)
• Other Internet Governance Division(TBC)

Number of volunteers requested for the devroom:
2 Logistics Volunteers

To coordinate with speakers, manage transitions, and support live sessions (names to be confirmed closer to date).

[Nemo]

FOSS in Open Data / Open Data Devroom

Managers : @nemo, @thejesh_gn (Datameet), Kartik Kwatra
(How India Lives), Gaurav Godhwani (CivicDataLab), Unnati Patel

Intro

Open Data is a growing movement, both in the FOSS world and outside of it. The
intersection of FOSS and Open Data is what this devroom would be focusing
on.

Motivation

Feasibility

There have been a few open data conferences in India in the past, including
Wikidata days, and a few smaller gatherings for Open Data Days. There have
been opendata talks at IndiaFOSS in the past, so this seems like the perfect
mix.

Volunteering

We believe that 1 additional reviewer and 1 additional volunteer should be
sufficient. The devroom managers listed above have agreed for both reviewing
and logistics volunteering.

CFP

Scope

Please submit proposals that focus on “Open Data”. For the purposes of this
devroom, if your talk is focused at a specific dataset, it must be openly
accessible and usable by anyone for any purpose. Talks that are about the
open-data tooling are welcome as well, such as about Data journalism, or
tools like datasette for example. Research that quantifies the impact of
open-data is welcome. For any talk that focuses on software, the software
must be published under a FOSS license.

Note that this is not a Big Data devroom - your dataset could be small and
impactful. We are also eager to hear from AI researchers wanting to talk
about open datasets being used for their work.

Selection/review

Crude order of preference for proposals (first is highest preference)

• Research or other impactful work done with open-datasets
• Open Dataset publications with an Indian Focus
• Open Data tooling†
• Meta-proposals on Open Data (such as about Linked Data, or Open Data
  commons)
• Open dataset publications (not necessarily India focused)
• All other proposals

Session Types

We are mainly looking for 25 minute long talks, and 10 minute long flash talks. Current tentative plan is to host 4x25 minute talks, and 5x10 minute lightning talks. Note that while the CFP form says 15 minute lightning talks, we’d prefer to have more crisp talks, so plan accordingly.

† - Talks about generic data tooling (such as postgres, or hadoop) will be
considered out of scope. This is somewhat subjective, but we will do our best.

[Ayan_Mahapatra]

Title: FOSS Licensing and Security Compliance

Volunteers:

• @Ayan_Mahapatra
• Arun Azhakesan

Intro:

The scale of open source software reused in products is ever increasing.
And US, EU, Indian, and other governments introduced cybersecurity compliance
regulations for anyone distributing software. So, what does this mean for developers?

Any software maintainer, producer, developer, and contributor needs to be aware of their
software dependencies and any associated risk, and how to efficiently manage software components.
This is most often – and now regulated – with SBOMs. FOSS compliance – both licensing and security
– is simplified by generating SBOMs and checkmarks in the compliance process.

Our goal is for open source developers, users, and contributors to exchange requirements, plans,
and collaboration opportunities around FOSS tools for software license and provenance detection,
vulnerability management, regulatory compliance like SEBI regulations/CERT guidelines,
code scanning, container and package dependency analysis, SBOM creation and consumption,
and license or vulnerability databases - basically, all the tools you need to figure out
which FOSS code you use, where it is from, what is its license, how to comply with the
license, and whether it contains vulnerable code.

Proof of Feasibility:

We’ve had multiple well received talks/sessions on similar topics at individual FOSSUnited
chapters and IndiaFOSS conferences, to name a few:

• OSPOs and Organisations BOF (IndiaFOSS 2024)
• Demystifying SBOMs: Lakshmi Teja IndiaFOSS 2024
• FOSSUnited Bangalore March 2024:
  • ScanCode to Reuse Code Safely: Ayan
  • Open Source Projects: Legal Issues: Biju K. Nair
• There have been some proposals/discussions on this too:
  • Software patents and FOSS
  • Partnership Conversations

At IndiaFOSS 2024, there was a Birds of a Feather (BoF) session on OSPOs and Organisations
which we attended and there were lively and well attended discussions there on all things
OSPOs, SBOMs and Security/License compliance. We had a participation of around ~30 people
and 1 hour wasn’t enough for all the interesting discussions we had there. We had to
relocate to a different area in the convention center to continue our discussions since
there were other sessions after that.

We have also community partners at IndiaFOSS 2024, hosted two booths for community
organisations that we are a part of:

• OpenChain India WG
• AboutCode

We the organisers have also been a part of the team that organised the full-day FOSDEM fringe event:
FOSS license and security compliance tools workshop, and we have attended/there were similar devrooms
being organised every year at FOSDEM:

• SBOM Devroom 2025
• Legal and Policy Devroom 2025

Number of volunteers requested for the devroom:

Proposal reviewers: 2
Logistics volunteers: 2

CFP:

Scope of talks:

• FOSS tooling and open data projects on licensing, vulnerabilities, community health metrics, compliance, software supply chain management
• FOSS compliance tooling users and common issues
• SBOMs (Software Bill of Materials): tools that produce or consume SBOMs
• Use of different types of SBOMs (Source, Build, Deployed, Runtime, etc.) in the software supply chain
• Indian policy landscape on SBOMs/Compliance
• Case studies and lessons from OSPOs (Open Source Program Offices)
• Case studies and lessons from Security/Compliance teams
• Software supply chain problems and security issues
• Best practices and open standards in software supply chain
• Developer advocacy and open source communities in compliance
• Vulnerability advisories, open data, reporting and reachability
• Open source licensing, copyrights, patents

Talks from open source communities on community-driven innovation and real-world applications will be preferred.

We welcome both technical talks and practical demos, with preferred durations of:

• 5 min (Lightning Talks)
• 20+5 min (Standard Sessions)

This is merged with another proposal: Navigating FOSS Compliance: Governance, Security, and Global Impact proposed by @Lakshmiteja and now is here: FOSS Licensing and Security Compliance

[Lakshmiteja]

Navigating FOSS Compliance: Governance, Security, and Global Impact

Managers:

Prashant Singh Baghel - is an experienced professional specializing in Application security, Information security and Software Asset Management (SAM). Has a proven track record of helping organizations develop and implement comprehensive compliance and governance frameworks in alignment with industry standards.

• Gave expert talk on ASPM during OSI 2024
• Managed booth during OSI 2024

Anuj Pathekar - Experienced Application Security Consultant with a focus on FOSS compliance and AI, motivated to run the devroom to bridge gaps in open source licensing and application security.

Managed booth during OSI 2024

LakshmiTeja – is an experienced Application Security Consultant with FOSS compliance and governance, worked with clients to setup their OSS databases to automate the Compliance processes in alignment with Industry standards.

• Presented talk on AI generated Code and its compliance during FOSSUNITED June 2024
• Presented talk on SBOMs during FOSSUNITED India 2024 event
• Managed booth during OSI 2024

Number of volunteers requested for the devroom – 2

Welcome and Introduction:

Welcome to our devroom dedicated to exploring the critical aspects of FOSS compliance, governance, and the evolving regulatory landscape impacting open-source software globally. In this session, we aim to bridge the gap between FOSS development and compliance, emphasizing the importance of robust governance frameworks like OSPOs, Software Bill of Materials (SBOMs), Application Security Posture Management (ASPM), and addressing the integration of AI-generated code into proprietary systems while ensuring FOSS compliance.

proof of feasibility:

The overarching theme of this devroom is to foster collaboration among OSPOs, developers, compliance experts, and policy makers. We’ll explore:

• Collaborative strategies to enhance OSS sustainability and security across diverse global contexts.
• Demonstrations of state-of-the-art Software Composition Analysis (SCA) tools, OSS security solutions, and Application Security Posture Management (ASPM) platforms.
• Panel discussions on the dual importance of FOSS compliance—from licensing requirements to security protocols—and the impact of regulations such as CRA, EU Cyber Resilience Act, and US Executive Orders on international code distribution.
• The pivotal role of SBOMs in bolstering transparency and regulatory adherence within OSS projects.
• Ethical considerations, pros, and cons of integrating AI-generated code into proprietary systems within FOSS environments, and best practices in AI deployment that align with FOSS compliance standards.

Objective:

Our goal is to create a platform where contributors, policy makers, compliance teams, and stakeholders across the FOSS community can exchange insights, share experiences, and gain awareness of global regulatory shifts affecting FOSS. Together, we’ll foster a deeper understanding of compliance challenges and opportunities, paving the way for a more cohesive and informed approach to navigating the dynamic world of open-source governance.

Scope of CFP:

We invite submissions for presentations and panel discussions at our devroom dedicated to exploring the intersection of FOSS compliance, governance, and the integration of AI within open-source ecosystems. This session aims to delve into practical strategies, emerging trends, and regulatory impacts affecting FOSS communities globally.

Key Topics:

• FOSS Compliance and Governance
• AI Integration in FOSS
• Security and Application Posture Management (ASPM)
• Regulatory Landscape and Compliance Challenges

We’re open to all kinds of sessions—whether it’s a talk, hands-on workshop, live tool demo, or even a panel discussion. If your idea connects with FOSS compliance, security, governance, or how AI is changing the game, we’d love to hear from you!