Publication: Forbes

Before diving into what an open approach to AI looks like in practice, we must first understand what “open-source AI” really means. Defining it is a complex and evolving effort involving plenty of debate, but creating a standard is helpful for providing clear guidelines, promoting transparency and trust, and accelerating innovation and collaboration. One formal definition that has emerged comes from the Open Source Initiative (OSI): the Open Source AI Definition (OSAID), which is a work in progress that we endorse.

Open-source AI, according to the Open Source Initiative, is “an AI system made available under terms and in a way that grants the freedom to use the system for any purpose and without having to ask for permission, study how the system works and inspect its components, modify the system for any purpose, including to change its output, share the system for others to use with or without modifications, for any purpose.”

The Open Source Initiative (OSI) defines what open source is. For a model to truly be open source, its license should allow, among other things, the free redistribution and creation of derivative works, for example, by fine-tuning the model. If this permission is not granted, it’s not open source.

Mark Surman, president of the Mozilla Foundation, joins Forbes Talks to discuss the importance of open-source AI. Surman explains why consumers should care about the AI they’re using, highlighting the risks of closed-source AI systems. Surman also delves into privacy implications and shares insights into companies prioritizing user privacy in their AI practices.