Google, in collaboration with The Linux Foundation, has launched an initiative to fund and advance open development within the Chromium ecosystem.
The initiative, Supporters of Chromium-Based Browsers, was announced Thursday. It is designed to provide a neutral platform for supporting Chromium-related projects.
Chromium, the open-source backbone of Google Chrome, was introduced in 2008. Since then, it has powered a range of popular browsers, including Microsoft Edge, Opera, and Brave.
Several major tech companies, including Meta, Microsoft, and Opera, have already joined the initiative. Microsoft stated that its involvement would help “provide clear and open governance that directs funds towards community-driven needs.”
Google’s Investment in Chromium
In its announcement, Google emphasized its extensive contributions to Chromium, noting over 100,000 commits made in the past year. The company highlighted its ongoing commitment to the project:
“Google continues to invest heavily in the shared infrastructure of the open-source project to ‘keep the lights on,’ including running thousands of servers, executing millions of tests, addressing hundreds of bugs daily, and maintaining code health to ensure the project’s sustainability.”
Context Amid DOJ Scrutiny
The launch of this initiative follows the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) demand that Google divest Chrome as part of its antitrust remedies after being ruled a monopolist. In response, Google offered to suspend exclusive deals making its search engine the default on browsers like Safari and Mozilla Firefox for three years.
While the move could signal an effort by Google to demonstrate its critical role in supporting Chromium, the establishment of the Supporters of Chromium-Based Browsers suggests the ecosystem would remain robust even without Google’s direct involvement.
This initiative underscores the importance of collaborative efforts in sustaining open-source projects that underpin many widely-used technologies.
