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ZDNET's key takeaways
Generative AI is erasing open source code provenance.
FOSS reciprocity collapses when attribution and ownership disappear.
The commons that built AI may not survive its success.
We live in an astonishing technology-based world, fueled by and dependent on software. That software provides our networks, our security, our financial transactions, our supply chain management, and, of course, the generative AI systems that are top of mind for just about everyone.
But where does that digital infrastructure come from? Nearly all of it is based on free and open source software, what the industry calls FOSS. This is code built by enormously collaborative communities, driven by coders who use the fruits of FOSS and who also actively contribute back bug fixes and improvements.
Also: How AI coding agents could destroy open source software
This reciprocity of contributions back to the code is at the core of FOSS, which puts it fundamentally at the core of modern society. The amazing thing about our open source infrastructure is that it's governed by fundamental agreements about the provenance of the code.
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