Google Open Source Programs Office
The Google Open Source Programs Office brings all the value of open source to Google and all the resources of Google to open source. It manages Google's involvement in the open source ecosystem, focusing on sustainability, security, and mentorship while enabling Google to build on open source technologies and share Google-developed technology under open licenses.
At a Glance
- Open source software developers and maintainers
- Pre-university and university students interested in open source
- Technical writers working on documentation
- Security researchers focused on open source vulnerabilities
- +4 more
AI Tools by Google Open Source Programs Office
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A2UI
Open Source Agent UI Protocol
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Latest News
Google Open Source Peer Bonus Program ends in final year, awards 130 contributors
This Week in Open Source blog series launched by Google OSPO
Google Season of Docs announces results of 2024 program
Google lays off Chris DiBona (founder of OSPO) and Jeremy Allison among open source team members
Products & Services
A global, online program focused on bringing new contributors into open source software development. Contributors work with open source organizations on 12+ week programming projects under mentor guidance. Since 2005, the program has connected 19,000+ new contributors from 112 countries with 18,000+ mentors from 133 countries.
A program that provides support for technical documentation in open source projects by connecting technical writers with open source communities for three-month projects.
A free fuzzing-as-a-service platform for popular open source projects based on the open source ClusterFuzz. With full end-to-end automation, OSS-Fuzz uncovers security vulnerabilities and stability issues. To date, it has reported 15,000+ bugs in over 225 OSS projects.
A program that rewards external contributors nominated by Google employees. Over $1 million has been distributed via this program. The program ended in 2025 after 14 years of operation.
Market Position
Google's OSPO is one of the oldest and most established open source program offices in the technology industry, founded in 2004. It distinguishes itself through: (1) Scale and reach - operates global programs like GSoC that have engaged 19,000+ contributors across 112 countries; (2) Comprehensive approach - covers security, documentation, mentorship, and infrastructure; (3) Financial commitment - over $30 million in direct support plus $100 million pledged to open source security; (4) Major project releases - stewards critical open source projects like Android, Chromium, Kubernetes, TensorFlow, and Go; (5) Industry leadership - helped establish CNCF and Open Usage Commons. Compared to other tech companies' OSPOs (Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Red Hat), Google's is notable for its emphasis on community mentorship programs and security tooling, while also being one of the largest contributors of open source code globally.
Leadership
Founders
Chris DiBona
Founded Google's Open Source Programs Office in August 2004. Served as Director of Open Source at Google from 2004 to January 2023 when he was laid off during Alphabet workforce reductions. Previously: Editor at Slashdot, Co-founder of Damage Studios, Associate in Google Ventures. Education: B.S. in computer science from George Mason University, M.S. in software engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. Co-editor of 'Open Sources: Voices from the Open Source Revolution' and 'Open Sources 2.0'. Currently works in the office of the CTO at Microsoft.
Executive Team
Stephanie Taylor
Program Manager, Google Summer of Code Lead
Program Manager at Google in the Open Source Program Office since 2011. Has led the Google Summer of Code program since 2015 and previously led Google Code-in until its end in 2020. Over 25 years of experience managing client relations in tech.
amanda casari
Staff Developer Relations Engineer / Manager
Developer Relations Engineering Manager in the Open Source Programs Office. Leads the Contributor Experience and Open Source + AI teams. Engineer and researcher who has worked in many technical disciplines for over 20 years.
Founding Story
The Google Open Source Programs Office was established in 2004, making it one of the first OSPOs in the industry. Initially, OSPO focused on enabling Google to build on open source technologies and share Google-developed technology under open licenses. The office was created to manage Google's relationship with the open source community and ensure proper license compliance. Chris DiBona, who founded the office, changed the name to 'Open Source Programs Office' shortly after Christine Peterson coined the term.
Business Model
Revenue Model
The Google Open Source Programs Office is a cost center within Google/Alphabet that does not generate direct revenue. It operates as an internal team that provides strategic value by: (1) Managing license compliance and open source usage across Google; (2) Building goodwill and relationships with the open source community; (3) Attracting developer talent through visibility and engagement; (4) Supporting the open source projects that Google's products depend on; (5) Establishing industry standards and best practices through leadership. Funding comes from Google/Alphabet's overall budget.
Target Markets
- Open source software developers and maintainers
- Pre-university and university students interested in open source
- Technical writers working on documentation
- Security researchers focused on open source vulnerabilities
- Open source project foundations and organizations
- Companies seeking to establish or improve their open source practices
- Introducing new developers to open source software development
- Improving security and stability of critical open source projects
- Supporting technical documentation in open source communities
- Protecting open source project identities through trademark management
- Enabling companies to properly use and contribute to open source
- Reducing barriers to open source participation
- Over 1,000 open source organizations have participated in Google Summer of Code
- 225+ open source projects use OSS-Fuzz
- Hundreds of organizations supported through sponsorships and grants
- Notable projects supported include: Linux kernel, Apache Foundation projects, Python Software Foundation, NumFOCUS projects, Cloud Native Computing Foundation projects, Eclipse Foundation projects, and many others