Welcome to Open Channels News, your go-to source for the latest open source news. In today’s episode, Robert Jacobi covers the most important stories shaping open source and digital infrastructure:
Reddit’s AI Ban Sparks Debate Over “Openness”:
Moderators of the r/OpenSource subreddit create new rules barring projects that use, assist, or are made for AI, igniting controversy on what truly qualifies as open source. Some community members support the move, while others have migrated to more AI-friendly spaces. The debate highlights a divide: openness of process versus openness of result.
GridCraft Targets Excel With Open Source Competition:
A new open-source spreadsheet app called GridCraft, written in Rust, aims to provide a familiar experience for Excel users. While still in alpha and not fully compatible, the project reflects a broader effort to create robust alternatives to proprietary software, even as disagreements over AI’s role in open source development persist.
Tesco Eyes Proxmox as VMware Dispute Intensifies:
UK supermarket giant Tesco plans a major migration from VMware to the open-source virtualization platform Proxmox for retail edge systems. Prompted in part by a steep licensing dispute with VMware’s owner, Broadcom, this move shows how open source can provide leverage and choice for large enterprises—though not without challenges and risks.
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Takeaways
- Reddit’s r/OpenSource Bans AI Projects: The r/OpenSource subreddit moderators implemented strict rules excluding any projects made with AI, intended for AI, or using AI tools, sparking debate about what truly constitutes open source and whether openness relates to the development process or post-release freedoms 00:29.
- Community Splits Over AI’s Role in Open Source: Disagreements over AI in open source have led some members to support the new rules, while others migrated to a more inclusive subreddit, highlighting ongoing divisions about the balance between human-driven and AI-assisted software 01:21.
- GridCraft Offers Open Source Excel Alternative: A new open source spreadsheet app, GridCraft, aims to replicate Microsoft Excel’s core features and workflow, closing the usability gap with proprietary software, though it remains in alpha and lacks full compatibility 01:50.
- AI Fuels New Open Source Tools Amid Backlash: Developers are increasingly using AI-assisted methods to accelerate open source alternatives, heightening the irony as parts of the community push back against AI involvement even as it drives innovation 02:46.
- Tesco Plans VMware-to-Proxmox Migration: UK retailer Tesco is preparing to switch from VMware to the open source Proxmox virtualization platform for its retail technology infrastructure, citing high licensing costs and the desire for more control, although such migrations carry significant technical and operational challenges 03:10.
- Open Source Gives Organizations More Choice, Not Zero Risk: Embracing open source solutions provides flexibility and negotiating power, but does not eliminate the complexity, cost, or risks of migrating and managing critical infrastructure, especially for enterprises like Tesco 04:11.
- Underlying Theme: Control and Choice in Software: Across these stories, the central issue is who controls the software we rely on—whether through community standards, development tools like AI, or enterprise technology decisions—with Robert emphasizing that the promise of open source lies in providing genuine options, not perfection 04:46.
Questions This Episode Answers
Q: Why are some open source communities excluding AI-generated or AI-focused projects?
A: The moderators of the r/OpenSource subreddit have implemented rules that exclude projects using, made with, or intended for AI, arguing that the current AI ecosystem conflicts with their community’s values. This stance has sparked debate about whether openness should be based on the software’s creation process or the freedoms granted after release 00:24.
Q: What is GridCraft and how does it compare to Microsoft Excel?
A: GridCraft is a free, open-source spreadsheet application that aims to closely replicate the experience of Microsoft Excel. Written in Rust, it supports common Excel features like formulas and pivot tables, works across multiple operating systems, but is still in alpha, meaning template support and full compatibility are not guaranteed 01:50.
Q: How is AI-assisted development influencing open source software?
A: AI-assisted development is enabling the creation of more advanced open source software alternatives, helping developers close the gap between proprietary and open platforms. However, this also creates tension, as some in the open source community are attempting to exclude AI-related projects even as AI enables innovation 02:46.
Q: What does Tesco’s migration from VMware to Proxmox signify about open source adoption in enterprise environments?
A: Tesco’s planned move from VMware to the open-source Proxmox platform for retail edge systems indicates growing acceptance of open alternatives in large-scale, mission-critical settings. It reflects a push for greater control over technology and costs, especially in response to licensing disputes with proprietary vendors 03:10.
Q: Is open source software always free from operational risks or migration costs?
A: No, adopting open source software does not eliminate migration costs, support requirements, or operational risk. Even as it provides more choice and leverage, moving critical infrastructure—like Tesco’s shift to Proxmox—remains a complex process requiring significant planning and resources 04:14.
Q: What is the key debate sparked by excluding AI from some open source projects?
A: The main debate centers on whether openness should be defined by the methods used to create software, such as requiring human-written code, or by the user freedoms granted once software is released. This disagreement reflects evolving values within open source communities 01:37.
Q: Why are developers focused on making open source alternatives more like proprietary software?
A: Developers are aggressively working to match familiar workflows and user experiences of proprietary software to encourage adoption of open source alternatives. This shift aims to address user reluctance to switch by offering tools that closely resemble the proprietary solutions people are accustomed to 02:35.
Q: What underlying question ties together the episode’s stories about AI, new software, and infrastructure choices?
A: All the stories highlight the broader question of who controls the software people rely on. The episode suggests that the real promise of open source lies in giving users and organizations meaningful options and control, not perfection or effortless migrations 04:46.
Mentioned Links and Resources
- Gizmodo (Article on r/OpenSource Subreddit Rules) – Details the subreddit moderators’ decision to exclude AI-generated or AI-related projects.
🔗 https://gizmodo.com/tokens-are-cheap-open-source-subreddit-bans-ai-2000830386 - ZDNet (Jack Wallen’s GridCraft Review) – Covers testing of GridCraft, an open-source spreadsheet alternative to Excel. (Note: I couldn’t find the ZDNet review, so this is the general site.)
🔗 hhttps://www.zdnet.com/tech/gridcraft-excel-clone-hands-on/ - ArtCraft Crafting Apps (Developer of GridCraft) – A suite of open-source alternatives to proprietary Adobe and Microsoft productivity tools.
🔗 https://getartcraft.com/apps - The Register (Report on Tesco’s Proxmox Migration) – Reports on Tesco’s move to replace VMware with an alternative platform.
🔗 https://www.theregister.com/virtualization/2026/10/26/tesco-replacing-vmware-with-proxmox-in-its-stores-and-on-the-edge/5305281 - Proxmox (Open-Source Virtualization Platform) – Provides a virtualization platform as an alternative to VMware.
🔗 https://www.proxmox.com/
Episode Transcript
Robert Jacobi: Welcome to Open Channels News. I’m your host, Robert Jacobi, reporting this week from PressConf Europe. Today, 3 stories about open source and 3 very different ideas of what it means to be open. A Reddit community is drawing a hard line against AI. A new spreadsheet application is taking aim at Excel. And one of the world’s biggest retailers is looking to replace VMware with Proxmox. Let’s get into it.
First, an interesting fight over who gets to call themselves open source. According to Gizmodo, moderators of the r/OpenSource subreddit have announced rules excluding projects that use AI, were made with AI, or are intended for AI. That includes AI-adjacent tools written by humans. The moderators argue that today’s AI ecosystem conflicts with the values of their community, and their message to developers is pretty direct. Spending a fortune on AI tokens doesn’t make your project welcome.
Here’s the problem. Open source is traditionally about licensing, the ability to inspect code, modify it, and redistribute it. It’s not normally a test of whether a human typed every line. And increasingly, developers are using AI tools and projects that are already foundational to the internet. So where do you draw the line? A single AI-generated function? A documentation update? A whole application? Some community members support the restrictions. Others have moved to a new, more AI-friendly subreddit called r/TrueOpenSource.
To be clear, these are moderation rules for one Reddit community, not a change to the legal definition of open source. But they expose a very real disagreement. Is openness about the process used to create software, or about the freedoms people have once it’s released? And that’s a debate that’s definitely not going away.
And speaking of software that challenges established rules, here’s a pretty good example. ZDNet’s Jack Wallen has been testing GridCraft, a free open-source spreadsheet application designed to feel a lot like Microsoft Excel. It’s part of the ArtCraft family of productivity applications built to offer software experiences without requiring the original proprietary products. GridCraft is written in Rust and runs across Linux, macOS, Windows, and FreeBSD. It supports Excel-style files, formulas, charts, and pivot tables. Wallen found it fast and surprisingly familiar, even with fairly large spreadsheets.
Of course, there’s a caveat. It’s still alpha. Templates need work and compatibility isn’t guaranteed. This is not the application you should trust with your company’s only copy of the quarterly financials. Make a backup. What interests me is the bigger shift. For years, one reason people stayed on proprietary desktops was the software they needed simply wasn’t available elsewhere. Open source alternatives existed, of course, but matching a familiar workflow was another story. Now developers are trying to close that gap much more aggressively, and there’s a tension with our first story. AI-assisted development is helping fuel some of these new open source alternatives, just as parts of the community are trying to exclude AI-related projects. The code may be open, but the argument about how it got there is anything but.
Finally, open source isn’t just a community argument or a desktop experiment. Sometimes it’s a major infrastructure decision. The Register reports that UK supermarket giant Tesco is planning a migration from VMware to Proxmox for its retail edge systems. The evidence comes from a job posting for a senior engineering leader who would oversee both the VMware-Proxmox migration and a software-driven platform for managing technology across stores.
This isn’t a side project. Tesco operates more than 5,000 stores worldwide. Its in-store technology needs to keep working even when network connectivity is unreliable. The company has also been in a licensing dispute with VMware owner Broadcom. Tesco says one proposal presented a 175% increase over the pricing it believed it was entitled to. That dispute remains in court.
Now, Proxmox is an open-source virtualization platform. It gives organizations another option for running workloads without relying on VMware’s licensing model. But moving critical infrastructure is complicated, and a job advertisement is not confirmation that the entire migration has already happened. Open source can give a company more choice and leverage. It does not magically eliminate migration costs, support requirements, or operational risk. Still, when a retailer of Tesco’s scale is planning around Proxmox, that’s meaningful validation for alternatives that used to be dismissed as suitable only for smaller environments.
So what ties these stories together? One community is debating whether AI belongs in open source at all. Developers are using new methods to build alternatives to entrenched software. And a major enterprise is evaluating open infrastructure as a way to regain control over tech costs and technology choices. One underlying question: who gets to control the software we depend on? For me, that’s the real promise of open source. Not that every project is perfect or every migration is easy, but you have options.
I’m Robert Jacobi, and this has been Open Channels News. Until next time, be open and stay secure.
