zlacker

I guess that is the question - how to differentiate between "open-claiming" companies like openAI vs. "truer grass roots" organizations like Debian, python, linux kernel, etc? At least from the view point of, say, someone who is just coming smack into the field and without the benefit of years of watching the evolution/governance of each organization?

>>caycep+(OP)
>how to differentiate between "open-claiming" companies like openAI vs. "truer grass roots" organizations

Honestly? The people. Calculate the distance to (American) venture capital and the chance they go bad is the inverse of that. Linus, Guido, Ian, Jean-Baptiste Kempf of VLC fame, who turned down seven figures, what they all have in common is that they're not in that orbit and had their roots in academia and open source or free software.