Think about the tools you use every day as a developer.
JavaScript libraries. Frameworks. Databases. Testing tools. Build systems.
Many of them exist because developers spend countless hours building, fixing, securing, and maintaining open-source software.
But here’s the question:
If companies build billion-dollar products using open-source software, who supports the people maintaining it?
On October 21, 2026, Sentry announced that it had increased its annual open-source funding to $1 million.
The funding supports maintainers, critical dependencies, and open-source foundations. It includes $495,000 distributed through thanks.dev and $100,000 allocated through ecosyste.ms Funds.
This matters because open source is not simply code that everyone can download.
It is people giving their time to build tools that the entire world depends on.
Maintainers deserve sustainable funding, recognition, and support—not just another issue report or pull request.
My takeaway?
If your company depends on open source, giving back should be part of the business model.
And if you are a developer, consider sponsoring the projects you rely on, contributing code, improving documentation, or helping maintainers with issue triage.
Small contributions can make a real difference.
Read Sentry’s announcement:
https://sentry-blog.sentry.dev/another-year-another-1-000-000-to-open-source-maintainers/
What do you think: Should companies be expected to financially support the open-source projects they depend on?
Top comments (0)