Dronecode and the broader Linux Foundation community were thrilled to participate in FOSDEM 2025, joining thousands of open-source developers in Brussels for a weekend fueled by a shared passion for open technology. For those who haven’t experienced FOSDEM, it’s hard to capture the unique energy of this open, inclusive, and registration-free event; you really have to experience it yourself. Picture developers enthusiastically moving between buildings at the Université libre de Bruxelles, diving into talks and connecting over their love for innovation. It’s a one-of-a-kind gathering that truly embodies the spirit of open-source collaboration.
“This is my first time at FOSDEM, and I came mainly because my friends dragged me along—though people have been recommending it to me for years. After experiencing the first day, I can see why. FOSDEM is incredible because it brings together so many people who are deeply passionate about open-source software and sharing what they create. The idea that anyone can inspect, adapt, and build on the code is powerful, and it’s amazing to have a place where this community can come together.” said Roland Merteens, Robotics Engineer, and first time participant. “I also discovered some cool projects I hadn’t seen before, like someone running JavaScript on microcontrollers. It sounds a bit wild, but it’s fascinating because it lowers the barrier for people getting started with microcontrollers. Overall, FOSDEM has been a great experience, and I’m glad I finally made it!”
Exhibits from Sponsors
One of the standout surprises was the bustling exhibit area, where the halls were packed with attendees eagerly engaging with exhibitors showcasing some of the most prominent projects and foundations in the ecosystem. It was nearly impossible to walk through without getting caught in the excitement! The FOSDEM community clearly embraced the swag culture, proudly sporting T-shirts and stickers collected from various booths. A particular crowd favorite was the Linux Foundation Europe booth, which drew a constant stream of visitors with its array of merchandise from top CNCF projects and exclusive discounts on training and certifications available only to FOSDEM attendees. The energy and enthusiasm around the exhibits were a testament to the vibrant spirit of the event.
Embedded, Mobile, and Automotive
The Embedded, Mobile, and Automotive devroom at FOSDEM 2025 was a hub of innovation, bringing together a vibrant community of developers and enthusiasts to explore the latest in open-source technologies. The program was packed with engaging talks, covering everything from CubeSat communication systems and general-purpose humanoid robotics with dora-rs to dual A/B update solutions for embedded Linux. Standout sessions included Thibault Poncelet’s deep dive into automotive communication systems with Reverse Engineering CAN Communication and Building ECUs Using Elixir and the BEAM, and Florian Limberger’s exploration of Bluetooth Low Energy applications in Developing BLE Host Applications with Zephyr. Attendees also got a closer look at the integration of MicroPython in embedded systems and enjoyed a lively update on the Zephyr RTOS during its dedicated roasting party. With a full house for nearly every session, the devroom highlighted the rapid advancements in embedded technologies and the critical role of open-source collaboration in shaping the future of the industry.
“FOSDEM is one of the most important open-source gatherings in the world, and this year was no exception,” said Walt Miner, AGL Community Manager at the Linux Foundation, devroom co-chair. “I came to host the Embedded, Mobile, and Automotive devroom, as well as the Automotive BoF, but it’s also the best place to connect with a wide variety of experts across countless projects. What makes FOSDEM so special is its diversity—it’s not tied to a single project or technology, and every year brings new devrooms and discoveries. This year, I was excited to learn more about OpenPilot and meet some of the people using it.”
Miner continued, “In the Embedded, Mobile, and Automotive devroom, Zephyr was a recurring theme, with so many great talks that we could easily justify a dedicated Zephyr devroom next year. The devroom was a huge success—our 210-seat room was packed for every session, and we had three times more talk submissions than we could accommodate. It’s inspiring to see such enthusiasm and expertise in the community, and I’m already looking forward to next year!”
Robotics and Simulation
The 2025 edition of FOSDEM marked a significant milestone for the robotics community by introducing its first dedicated Robotics devroom. This exciting addition brought together over a hundred developers, offering a program filled with insightful and educational content on some of the most impactful open-source projects in robotics. A central theme throughout the devroom was the Robot Operating System (ROS), with many featured projects showcasing compatibility with this widely adopted platform. The aerial robotics space was also well-represented, featuring two standout talks: “Ardupilot: Trusted, Versatile, and FOSS Autopilot for All and Everything” by Pierre Kancir and “Build, Launch, and Soar with Dronecode: The Infrastructure Ecosystem for Aerial Robotics Development.” Additionally, Jan Hanca’s talk, “O3DE: Creating Realistic Simulations with Open-Source Game Engine,” highlighted the growing intersection of robotics and simulation, demonstrating how open-source tools like O3DE can be leveraged to create highly realistic and scalable robotic simulations.
“FOSDEM is a great conference with a different vibe that fits well with the open source community. It’s free, held on a weekend, and accessible even on a limited budget. It’s a fantastic place to catch up with others in the community and connect with developers behind your favorite open source projects.” — Marcus Eliasson, Co-Founder of Bitcraze
The success of this year’s Robotics devroom has set the stage for an even more significant return in 2026. We’re already looking forward to coming back and hope to see the robotics community grow even stronger, with more developers, projects, and groundbreaking ideas taking the spotlight.
“I learned about FOSDEM one or two years ago from some folks on our Weekly Robotics slack, and instantly had a huge FOMO. FOSDEM is a truly open-source conference that does not discriminate, with a retro-hacker vibe that makes you feel like everything is possible. I loved that we had some robotics rockstars present in our devroom, and the fact that we managed to cover different technologies during the event. I hope we can bring more robots to the room next years.” Mateusz Sadowski — Founder Weekly Robotics, Robotics and Simulation Devroom Co-Chair.
Videos from Dronecode’s Talks
Both talks from Dronecode’s participation at FOSDEM 2025 are now available on the PX4 YouTube channel.
Build, Launch, and Soar with Dronecode, The Infrastructure Ecosystem for the Development of Autonomous Aerial Robotics
In this session, Ramón Roche, General Manager of the Dronecode Foundation, provided a rapidfire rundown of the Dronecode ecosystem of projects and their history. Watch to learn important statistics about the projects like their 30,000 contributors and 60 million lines of code as well as to get a breakdown of each of the projects including PX4 (flight control software), Pixhawk (open hardware standard), and MAVLink (messaging protocol).
Link to Session description and Slides on FOSDEM 25 website.
Infra for Drones: Lessons Learned from 15 Years of Open Source Robotics
In this talk, Roche brought attendees through the Dronecode Foundation’s journey in open source drone development and testing infrastructure. Since 2009, the project has grown to supporting over a million vehicles across 80+ board variants. This presents obvious challenges and Roche walks through how Dronecode works to address each of them, including tactics like grouping manufacturers and reducing integration test times among many others. Give this video a watch to learn more about the challenges of robotics testing and the impact community support like yours can enhance a project’s testing infrastructure.
Link to Session description and Slides on FOSDEM 25 website.
