INTRODUCTION
For a long time, I admired open-source contributors from afar, people who helped build the libraries, frameworks, and tools that power the software we use daily. This October, during Hacktoberfest 2025, I decided to finally take the leap and make my first real contribution to open source.
That experience, contributing to Spring AI, a project under the Spring Framework turned out to be both challenging and rewarding. In this post, I’ll share what I did, what I learned, and why I think everyone should try contributing at least once.
How It Started
I joined Hacktoberfest this year with a simple goal: to understand what contributing to open source really feels like. After exploring a few repositories, I noticed Spring AI, an application framework for AI engineering built by the Spring team.
As someone interested in backend development, Java, and AI integrations, this felt like the perfect project to dive into. I scanned through open issues, read contribution guidelines, and picked an issue related to fixing Azure OpenAI auto-configuration.
The Contribution
The task was small but technical, updating a Spring Boot auto-configuration class to include the correct dependency for ToolCallingAutoConfiguration.
I forked the repository, cloned it locally, and followed the contribution setup. Along the way, I ran into:
Checkstyle formatting errors I didn’t cause but had to understand.
Build failures that taught me how Maven and Spring’s formatting rules work.
A review cycle with one of the project maintainers, who helped me refine the PR.
After I made the requested updates and pushed the final changes, the maintainer rebased, squashed, and merged my code into the project. Seeing my work appear in a widely used open-source framework was an incredible moment.
What I Learned
This single PR taught me a lot more than I expected:
Read contribution guides carefully, every project has its own workflow and formatting rules.
Code reviews are learning opportunities, maintainers often suggest small but important details that improve your engineering mindset.
Even small contributions matter, fixing a line of configuration or documentation still improves the project.
Communication is key. Be polite, thank reviewers, and show that you’re open to feedback.
It’s okay if your PR isn’t merged directly, sometimes maintainers rebase or squash your commits for consistency; what matters is that your work becomes part of the codebase.
The Hacktoberfest Twist
Although my pull request was part of Hacktoberfest, it wasn’t counted automatically because the maintainer rebased and merged it manually, a common workflow for large enterprise projects.
Still, the real reward wasn’t the t-shirt. It was seeing my name in the Spring AI commit history and knowing that I contributed to one of the world’s most recognized Java frameworks.
What’s Next
This first experience gave me confidence to keep contributing, not just during Hacktoberfest, but throughout the year. My goal now is to explore more open-source projects, particularly those involving:
Java and Spring Boot
AI integrations
Cloud and backend architecture
If you’re thinking about contributing but haven’t yet, start small. Fix a typo, improve documentation, or pick a “good first issue.” The open-source community is more welcoming than it looks.
Final Thoughts
Contributing to open source is one of the best ways to grow as a developer. It pushes you beyond tutorials into real-world collaboration, code quality, and communication.
I’m grateful to the Spring AI maintainers, especially @ilayaperumalg
, for their guidance and patience during my first PR review.
This experience reminded me that even the smallest contributions make a lasting impact, not only on the project but on your growth as a developer.
Pull Request: Fix Azure OpenAI Auto-Configuration – spring-projects/spring-ai#4636
Project: Spring AI GitHub Repository
Author: William Nnamani
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