🎭 NATS: When Your Digital Child Becomes the Prize in a Custody Battle
Reminder to all companies:
If you build your empire on open-source and contribute nothing back, don't be surprised when the ground starts cracking.
NATS, one of the few messaging systems that actually works without summoning ancient demons, now finds itself torn between its creators at Synadia and its adoptive guardians at CNCF. Like any good custody battle, it’s about one thing: Money. 🤑
As a tiny contributor to NATS, it fills me with childlike glee and existential dread to witness what happens when open source ideals collide headfirst with cold, hard business reality.
It’s a classic story:
A vendor generously donates an open-source jewel… only to demand it back when the math stops adding up.
Synadia, the ever-devoted parent, wants to put NATS under the Business Source License (BSL) to secure its survival. Meanwhile, CNCF holds the project in a loving but legally fortified embrace, refusing to let go.
CNCF, clutching its righteous torch of community ownership, refuses to hand over the toys, reminding Synadia: “You gave it away. There are rules. Also… you signed things.”
As a microscopic speck in this universe of giants, I have one simple emotion: sadness.
Sadness that the best technology can still be crushed under the weight of human greed, misaligned incentives, and tragic irony.
OSS survives because we believe in it. OSS dies when we monetize belief.
Whatever happens, little NATS deserves better than a lawsuit. It deserves a future.
Will I stop contributing to NATS?
No. I'm far too stubborn for that.
Will I trust it the same way?
Ask me again when the lawsuits stop.
⚡ Still contributing. Still dreaming. Still worried.
Sources:
* cncf.io: https://www.cncf.io/blog/2025/04/24/protecting-nats-and-the-integrity-of-open-source-cncfs-commitment-to-the-community/
* thestack: https://www.thestack.technology/we-want-it-back-synadia-tries-to-claw-nats-back-from-a-shocked-cncf/
* Nats.io: https://github.com/cncf/foundation/blob/main/documents/nats/Proposal%20to%20exit%20NATS%20from%20CNCF.pdf
#opensource #natsio #cncf #synadia #foss #techdrama #softwareengineering #NATS #OSS #BusinessSourceLicense #DeveloperLife #SupportOSS #coding #programming
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