2025-10-03
Open Social Summit Amsterdam: the Dutch East India Company building and a boat full of open source nerds
Open Social Summit 2025 in Amsterdam: platform business models, digital sovereignty, armed forces using open source, and a canal boat tour with good cheese and pizza.
In Belgium we sometimes laugh about the "gierige Hollanders", the supposedly thrifty Dutch. Yesterday I joined the Open Social Summit in Amsterdam, and the Open Social team really did put that stereotype to shame. The hospitality was exceptional.
The event was held in the building once used by the Dutch East India Company. Seventeenth century walls, top-quality content, and a room full of people who care about open source community platforms. A good combination.
Content highlights
A few things stood out.
The Platform Business Model Canvas by Emile Berckmoes clicked immediately. It has a flywheel of success built into it. Recommended reading if you work on platforms.
Eloy Crespo brought amazing stories about armed forces and nations running open source office software. The kind of stories that make you realise how far this movement has gone.
And sorry (not sorry) Bram ten Hove: your visualisations were so inspiring that I was dumping ideas at you for a solid stretch afterwards.
The thread running through it all
In multiple talks, the same message came through: be digitally sovereign.
My advice to anyone reading this: think about your operational, cultural, legal, and economic independence. EU law will require transparency about it. It is coming.
The evening
A boat tour through the Amsterdam canals with a group of open source nerds. Good cheese, excellent pizza, professionally narrated by Moritz Arendt.
Would 100% recommend.
Big thanks to the Open Social team for making it such a memorable experience.
