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Stefane Fermigier

Bio

Stefane Fermigier is a renowned French tech entrepreneur and open source advocate, with a strong background in both business and academia. As a graduate of ENS Paris (now ENS PSL) and holding a PhD in mathematics from Paris 7 University (now University of Paris), Fermigier has a solid foundation in technology and mathematics.

As a serial entrepreneur, Fermigier founded Nuxeo in 2000, a company that was eventually sold in 2021 for $150 million. He is also the founder and CEO of Abilian, a company that develops enterprise information management solutions using open source software.

Fermigier is deeply committed to fostering the growth of the open source ecosystem in France and Europe. He has co-founded and led several organizations in various capacities, such as president, co-president, or vice-president, including:

  • EUCLIDIA (2021)
  • APELL (2020)
  • The PyData Paris / PyParis conference (2014)
  • CNLL (2010), the French National Council of Free / Open Source Companies
  • GTLL (2007), the business and innovation cluster for open source in the Paris Region (part of the Systematic Paris Region cluster)
  • The Open World Forum / Paris Open Source Summit (2008), a yearly conference dedicated to open source and “open everything” in Paris
  • EuroLinux (2000), a federation of European open source associations that campaigned against software patents between 2000 and 2005
  • AFUL (1998), the French-speaking Linux and free software users association

Fermigier has also been involved in the creation of several open source projects, such as:

  • 2021: NUA (Python and Docker based cloud platform)
  • 2016: Olapy (Python based business analytics)
  • 2012: Abilian SBE (Python based social business platform)
  • 2009: Apache Stanbol (content analysis)
  • 2009: Apache Chemistry (CMIS implementation in several languages)
  • 2007: Nuxeo EP (Java based ECM platform)
  • 2002: Nuxeo CPS (Python based collaboration suite)

As a strong proponent of European digital sovereignty, Fermigier regularly engages with French and European politicians and high-level civil servants to advocate for greater support for the free/open source business ecosystem. His contributions to the open source community and his efforts to bridge the gap between the Free Software and Open Source movements have made him an influential figure in the world of technology and open source software.

He believes that there is no practical difference between “free software” and “open source software,” and that the Free Software Movement and the Open Source Movement are two sides of the same coin. He advocates for these movements to join forces instead of being in conflict.

Page last modified: 2023-05-06 16:44:40