Late January is becoming one of the most important moments of the year for Europe’s open source ecosystem. With multiple conferences, workshops, policy summits, and community events happening back-to-back in Brussels, the region now celebrates a full EU Open Source Week.
From 26 January to 1 February 2026, developers, maintainers, policymakers, researchers, and organisations will gather to collaborate on the future of open digital infrastructure. At the center of this activity sits FOSDEM, with Linux Foundation Europe playing a major role throughout the week.
We have been heading to Brussels since 2023, and it’s been incredible to watch the community grow every year. (Curious about previous years? You can read more here: LF Europe at FOSDEM 2023, 2024 & 2025).
If you are planning your visit, start here:
Together, these events make EU Open Source Week one of the richest opportunities for collaboration in the global open source calendar.
The 2026 EU Open Source Policy Summit will bring together public and private sector leaders to show how open source delivers Europe’s digital sovereignty across security, cloud, AI, standards, and industrial innovation. Linux Foundation Europe is a Gold Sponsor of the Summit, underscoring its commitment to advancing open, collaborative digital ecosystems in Europe.
Gabriele Columbro (LF Europe / FINOS) will give a keynote on Europe’s digital sovereignty and the strategic role of open ecosystems.
Paula Grzegorzewska (LF Europe) will participate in the panel “Building Alternatives – Cloud & AI”, which will examine how open source can support competitive European cloud and AI ecosystems, trusted infrastructure, and interoperability. She will be joined by Alexandra Geese, Member of the European Parliament (Greens/EFA); Thibaut Kleiner, Director at DG CONNECT, European Commission; Frank Karlitschek, CEO of Nextcloud; Ritesh Paiboina, CTO of Open Telekom Cloud at T-Systems International; and Frank Feldmann, Chief Strategy Officer at SUSE.
The panel will explore how regulation, procurement, and industrial policy can be aligned to foster European alternatives to dominant global platforms, while ensuring openness drives innovation, interoperability, trust, and strategic control over critical digital infrastructure. Learn more and register to join Europe’s open source policy conversation.
FOSDEM remains Europe’s largest free gathering for open source developers, offering packed devrooms, main tracks, lightning talks, and hallway conversations across every part of the open ecosystem.
This year, several Linux Foundation hosted and affiliated projects will have stands on-site, showcasing both global and European-led open source efforts across cloud, telco, hardware, energy, embedded systems, and security, including:
We are also highlighting European-born initiatives and collaborations such as:
Together, these projects demonstrate how Europe is helping shape the future of open technology in areas like data infrastructure, energy systems, hardware enablement, security, and digital sovereignty.
2026 will be an important year for regulatory and policy conversations around open source. LF Europe will contribute research, guidance, and community dialogue on topics such as:
Linux Foundation Education will be present with:
Here are the devrooms that we co-organise and are closely aligned with LF Europe initiatives and activities:
If your work touches infrastructure, embedded, policy, energy, AI, or cybersecurity, these sessions are worth bookmarking.
Gabriele Columbro (Linux Foundation Europe) and Abel Samot (Red River West) will speak at FOSDEM in the Funding the FOSS Ecosystem track. The session explores how enterprise and VC funding, often overlooked in Europe, can strengthen upstream open source projects and fuel sustainable commercial ecosystems. Drawing on insights from the State of Commercial Open Source report, the speakers will share perspectives from LF Europe and Commit, Europe’s first VC fund dedicated to commercial open source. Learn more.
Global collaboration and Europe's digital sovereignty goals: debate
As Europe moves from slogans to strategy on digital sovereignty, open source is increasingly recognised as a foundation of technological autonomy. Yet the conversation often gets stuck on questions of origin and ownership that don’t align with how open source ecosystems actually function.
This panel will explore sovereignty as a matter of capability, participation, and influence, and how deeper engagement in global open source communities can reinforce, rather than dilute, Europe’s strategic autonomy. The discussion brings together perspectives from Gabriele Columbro of LF Europe and FINOS, Vittorio Bertola of Open-Xchange, and Thierry Carrez of the OpenInfra Foundation, with moderation by Paula Grzegorzewska (LF Europe). Learn more.
As part of the annual FOSDEM (Free and Open Source Software Developers European Meeting), the Linux Foundation Europe organises a special evening Reception for relaxed networking and conversations about all things open source on 31 January. We look forward to bringing together developers and open source enthusiasts from around the world.
Proudly sponsored by:
Cloud Native Computing Foundation, OpenSSF, LF Education, OpenInfra, Dronecode, Sovereign Tech Agency.
Registrations are now full. We will reopen the page if additional seats become available. Stay tuned for more details.
An in-person meetup focused on embedded systems and Zephyr-powered products, held as a FOSDEM fringe event. Registration required; seats limited.
Join the PX4 community for a half-day meetup in Leuven, just ahead of FOSDEM. Sponsored by Septentrio, this event brings together UAV and robotics developers, researchers, and industry professionals for technical talks, live demos, and hands-on discussion about GNSS resilience and PX4 integration. Learn more.
If you are visiting Brussels for EU Open Source Week for the first time, Paula shares a few simple suggestions to make the most of your time between sessions, devrooms, and evening events:
The Best Fries: You really have two great options here. Paula recommends Frituur Tabora right in the center, or heading over to Frit Flagey at Place Flagey. Both are legendary with locals for the perfect Belgian fry.
The Waffle Car experience: Don't overthink it, just try a waffle from a waffle car. These yellow trucks are everywhere, and honestly, there’s nothing better than a warm waffle while you’re on the move between meetings.
Stretch your legs: If you need a break from the crowds, take a walk at Bois de la Cambre. It’s a huge, beautiful park right next to the ULB campus where FOSDEM happens. It’s the best spot to get some fresh air and clear your head.
Sample the Beer: You are in the land of beer, so make sure to try one of the million beers Belgium has to offer.
Interested in talking with the LF Europe team about digital sovereignty, CRA, or related topics? You can find us at the EU Open Source Policy Summit and across FOSDEM, we would be happy to connect.
FOSS Backstage 2026, March 16 & 17, 2026:
Does FOSS Buy Sovereignty? Participation vs. Ownership
Policy debates often assume FOSS adoption delivers digital sovereignty. But does it? Sovereignty stems not from license freedoms but from technical capacity and community influence. Active participation in FOSS development—not mere adoption—determines whether nations achieve independence from proprietary lock-in and foreign control. A session by Mirko Boehm, Senior Director for Community Development, LF Europe. Learn more.
KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe 23 -26, March 2026 & Open Sovereign Cloud Day 23 March 2026
Once EU Open Source Week wraps up, the LF Europe team will turn toward KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe 2026, where we will co-host Open Sovereign Cloud Day 2026.
Open Sovereign Cloud Day brings together cloud native practitioners, maintainers, and public/private sector stakeholders to explore how open source technologies support digital sovereignty, including data residency, interoperability, and regulatory compliance across Europe.
The event is part of the CNCF-hosted Co-located Events at KubeCon Europe, with an All-Access Pass option available for in-person attendees.
Topics include:
Key Dates:
Get Involved:
EU Open Source Week 2026 demonstrates how deeply open source highlights Europe’s digital future, from cloud-native infrastructure and energy systems to secure supply chains and sovereignty. The conversations happening in Brussels this week will shape European open source strategy for years to come, and Linux Foundation Europe is proud to support the developers, maintainers, researchers, governments, and organizations building that future.
We are excited to continue these discussions at KubeCon Europe and Open Sovereign Cloud Day, where technical innovation meets real-world implementation.
Here’s to a productive and inspiring week and to seeing you in Brussels.