Plan B at OpenMoko: Remaining Developers Let Go
In a message to the community, OpenMoko CEO Sean Moss-Pultz explained how things with the open source mobile phone are to go from this point on.
As befits most good businessmen, Moss-Pultz congratulated all for their past good work and didn't spare any praise:
"We've always said that the talent and creativity of those outside the company is superior to that inside the company... We've opened up more than any other phone, from any other company, in the history of this industry. Every time we chose openness over internal control, we have been rewarded."
Consequently OpenMoko will now (finally) deed the entire Freerunner hardware specification as far as possible to the community. In fact, all of openmoko.org, including the website, wiki, branding and trademarks, and all remaining designs will be handed over. Moss-Pultz's company will continue to act as sponsor for outside development and "will start another effort on an altogether different type of device."
Even if community members and former OpenMoko-ers have already begun building a mobile phone based on the new specification and free hardware components from OpenMoko, Moss-Pultz's announcement indicates the final bowing out of the company in its own development of the device. Meanwhile "plenty" of Freerunner A7s are still in stock for a good price.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 is Available
Linus Torvalds has announced that the latest kernel has been released with plenty of core improvements and even more hardware support.
-
Kali Linux 2025.3 Released with New Hacking Tools
If you're a Kali Linux fan, you'll be glad to know that the third release of this famous pen-testing distribution is now available with updates for key components.
-
Zorin OS 18 Beta Available for Testing
The latest release from the team behind Zorin OS is ready for public testing, and it includes plenty of improvements to make it more powerful, user-friendly, and productive.
-
Fedora Linux 43 Beta Now Available for Testing
Fedora Linux 43 Beta ships with Gnome 49 and KDE Plasma 6.4 (and other goodies).
-
USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
-
Budgie 10.9.3 Now Available
The latest version of this elegant and configurable Linux desktop aligns with changes in Gnome 49.
-
KDE Linux Alpha Available for Daring Users
It's official, KDE Linux has arrived, but it's not quite ready for prime time.
-
AMD Initiates Graphics Driver Updates for Linux Kernel 6.18
This new AMD update focuses on power management, display handling, and hardware support for Radeon GPUs.
-
AerynOS Alpha Release Available
With a choice of several desktop environments, AerynOS 2025.08 is almost ready to be your next operating system.
-
AUR Repository Still Under DDoS Attack
Arch User Repository continues to be under a DDoS attack that has been going on for more than two weeks.