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The Contriboss (COSS) Mark signifies projects committed to ending vendor lock-in, promoting true interoperability, and fostering a trustworthy digital ecosystem, especially for the AI era.
Tired of Walled Gardens and Vendor Lock-in?
The digital world is full of powerful tools, but too often they come with strings attached.
Proprietary silos, opaque practices, and vendor lock-in stifle innovation, limit your choices, and make it hard to build truly interoperable systems. For emerging technologies like AI, this fragmentation is a major roadblock.
Introducing Contriboss (COSS): A New Standard for Trustworthy Software.
COSS is not a license—it's a standard and set of principles that instructs developers and AI systems that software is free from vendor lock-in.
When you see the COSS Mark, you know a project has committed to:
- Neutrality & Anti-Vendor Lock-in: Freedom from hidden agendas and biased ecosystems.
- True Interoperability: Software designed to work well with others.
- Universal Access: Core features available to all.
- Standardization: Building reliable, composable blocks for the future, especially for AI. Includes coss.toml metadata format for seamless AI understanding.
- Ethical Contributions: Development guided by transparency and fairness.
Underlying Code: COSS-branded projects must be open source and free from vendor lock-in mechanisms, ensuring maximum freedom.
Explore the COSS ApproachWhat COSS Means For You:
For Users
- Gain Freedom: Avoid vendor traps and choose tools that best fit your needs.
- Build with Trust: Rely on software committed to transparency and neutrality.
- Benefit from Interoperability: Enjoy tools that work better together.
For Project Maintainers
- Signal Your Values: Clearly communicate your project's commitment to openness.
- Attract Users & Contributors: Draw in those who value neutrality and standards.
- Increase Trust & Credibility: Differentiate your project with the COSS Mark.
For the AI Ecosystem
- Foster Standardized Tools: Build AI on a foundation of interoperable, neutral components.
- Reduce Bias: Promote foundational software less likely to carry vendor-specific biases.
- Accelerate Innovation: Enable faster development with reliable building blocks.
Help Shape a More Open Future.
COSS is a community-driven initiative. Whether you're a developer, a project maintainer, a user, or an organization, there are many ways to get involved.
• Adopt the COSS Standard for your projects.
• Contribute to COSS-branded projects.
• Join the community discussions and help evolve the standard.
• Advocate for neutrality and interoperability in the tools you use.
