Open Conversations: The Future of Open Source Is Funded (Robert Drost)

Open source powers the modern internet—but the developers who build it rarely benefit from the value it creates. In this Open Conversation, Robert Drost, Head of the Eigen Foundation, shares how his team is building a repeatable model for open source funding—one that works without holding anything proprietary and channels value directly back to contributors. Through the Foundation’s work supporting EigenCloud (formerly EigenLayer), they’ve shown that open infrastructure can produce real financial outcomes and remain truly open. This approach opens new paths for developers who want to work on public goods without compromising on sustainability or impact. Filmed at Funding the Commons at the Internet Archive, San Francisco, March 2025. Relevant Projects: Eigen Foundation: https://www.eigenfoundation.xyz EigenCloud (formerly EigenLayer): https://www.eigencloud.xyz Funding the Commons: https://www.fundingthecommons.io Thank You to Our Sponsors: Protocol Labs: https://www.protocol.ai/ NEAR Foundation: https://near.foundation/ Holonym: https://holonym.io/ Octant: https://octant.app/ Drips Network: https://drips.network/ Filecoin Foundation: https://fil.org/ OpenLedger: https://www.openledger.xyz/ Orange DAO: https://www.orangedao.xyz/ Regen Network: https://www.regen.network/