Research

Investigating the impact of open source collaboration to solve the world’s most pressing challenges

Open source communities are at the heart of an explosion of technical innovation, where industry leaders, engineers, and end users are collectively creating and improving the digital infrastructure on which the global economy depends

With an extensive community of members, connections with thousands of companies, and hundreds of thousands of open source contributors, professionals, solution providers, and users, the Linux Foundation is in a unique position to investigate the growing scale of open source collaboration, and provide insights into emerging technology trends, best practices, and global impact of open source projects.

Through leveraging project databases and networks, and a commitment to best practices in quantitative and qualitative methodologies, Linux Foundation Research is designed to be the go-to repository for open-source insights for the benefit of organizations and governments the world over.

Explore Linux Foundation Research and Publications

Discover the Linux Foundation’s most recent collection of short- and long-form research and publications on open source topics of interest to members, projects communities, practitioners, and other stakeholders.

2021 Open Source Jobs Report

The ninth annual report, produced in partnership with edX, provides actionable insights on the state of open source talent that employers can use to inform their hiring, training, and diversity awareness efforts. It also provides IT professionals with clear, unbiased insights on which skills are most marketable and how training and certification efforts benefit job seekers as a differentiator in the hiring process.

Download Open Source Jobs Report

The 2021 State of Open Source in Financial Services Report

The first annual report, produced in partnership with FINOS, Scott Logic, Wipro, and GitHub, explores the state of open source in the financial services sector. The report identifies current levels of consumption and contribution of open source software and standards in this industry, as well as the governance, cultural, and aspirational issues pertaining to open source among banks, asset managers, and hedge funds.

Download State of Open Source in Financial Services Report

Why Linux Foundation Research

Open Data

LF Research will make all data public that is not personally identifiable or restricted by a third party, enabling other companies, analysts, and researchers access to a high quality dataset they can build from or incorporate into their work.

Actionable Conclusions

Linux Foundation Research will focus on conclusions that inform decision makers on topics where actionable intelligence is needed.

From the Experts

Working collaboratively with the leaders in the technology industry, LF Research will have access to leading subject matter experts to conduct primary research, collect data, encourage participation in surveys.

Topics that Matter

The Linux Foundation is on the front lines of critical topics in need of further research, from security of software supply chains to ecosystem leadership to creating standards and best practices.

Builds a Richer Perspective

We have the ability to curate a body of research that tells a more complete, non-fragmented story of the state of open software development.

Coming in November 2021: Security in Software Supply Chains

In 2021, LF Research will seek to uncover the important role of open source collaboration in making software supply chains more secure. It will explore the current state of software security, identify existing vulnerabilities, and explore ecosystem-wide initiatives necessary to address the threats brought about by the SolarWinds attack. An initial project-specific Roundtable discussion will take place to identify the key questions to be addressed, including:

Leadership by policy makers, organizations and enterprises
Current activities taking place to address the problem
Proposed courses of action, including the creation of risk frameworks
Identification of the necessary changes that need to be made across industries
How to raise the bar high enough to relegate further issues to nation state actors

Leadership and Governance

LF Research will be guided by input from the soon-to-be-announced LF Research Advisory Board, a rotating committee of community leaders and subject matter experts, who will collectively influence the program agenda and provide strategic input, oversight, and ongoing support on next-generation issues.

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RESEARCH