How do we get the European Union to invest in FOSS maintenance and security? This talk will explore the idea that the public sector should expand investment into Free and Open Source Software, with focus on investing in and maintaining FOSS being used as part of critical digital infrastructures. Instead of just calling for more funding for open source, public digital infrastructure, digital commons, etc, the talk will concretely compare proposed funding approaches, discuss the practicalities of an institution like the EU investing in FOSS maintenance and security, and examine how the funding might be delivered in the next Multiannual Financial Framework.

The second part of the talk will highlight the opportunity for a Sovereign Tech Agency at the EU level which plays a greater role in funding the maintenance and security of FOSS. The German government's support to build the Sovereign Tech Fund, now the Sovereign Tech Agency, has received a lot of attention in Europe and globally for its ability to support and invest in the FOSS ecosystem. This talk will present an initial legal analysis for what an EU-scale Sovereign Tech Fund could look like, in consideration of three different potential institutional set-ups: (2) one EU funding body to rule them all, (2) a federated set up with a coordinating body/system, and (3) a free for all for all Member States to set up their own funding bodies. It will then consider the next steps for developing a more comprehensive feasibility assessment of this topic and making the case for FOSS funding to policymakers in the European Commission.