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Cal.com's decision to abandon its AGPL license has sent shockwaves throughout the developer community, raising questions about the company's commitment to security and transparency in the face of AI-powered security threats.
Cal.com has abandoned its long-standing commitment to the GNU Affero General Public License (AGPL) and switched to a proprietary license. The company's decision is rooted in fear of AI-powered security threats, but this argument is disputed by many in the open source community. Some experts argue that open source code can provide a security advantage by sharing auditing budgets with other developers. The decision has raised questions about Cal.com's commitment to security and transparency, potentially using AI-powered threats as an excuse to retreat from open source commitments. The rapidly evolving landscape of software development and the increasing importance of AI highlight the need for companies like Cal.com to adapt their approaches to security and transparency.
Cal.com, a company that has been a prominent figure in the open source community for years, has recently made a shocking decision to abandon its long-standing commitment to the GNU Affero General Public License (AGPL) and switch to a proprietary license. This move has sent shockwaves throughout the developer community, with many expressing their disappointment and concern over Cal.com's decision.
The reasoning behind this decision is rooted in the company's fear of AI-powered security threats. According to Bailey Pumfleet, Cal.com's co-founder and CEO, the use of open source code poses a significant risk to the company's security. He argued that by making its code publicly available under the AGPL license, Cal.com is essentially providing a "blueprint" for hackers to exploit. This assertion has been met with skepticism by many in the open source community, who point out that this argument is not new and has been largely debunked.
In fact, some experts argue that the opposite is true: open source code can actually provide a significant security advantage. By making its code publicly available, Cal.com is able to share the auditing budget with other developers, which can lead to a more secure software ecosystem. As Simon Willison, co-creator of Django, put it, "Open source is more valuable because open source libraries can share that auditing budget while closed source software has to find all the exploits themselves in private."
However, Cal.com's decision has also raised questions about the company's commitment to security and transparency. By abandoning its AGPL license, Cal.com is essentially cutting off a key avenue for feedback and collaboration with the developer community. This has led some to wonder whether Cal.com's concerns about AI-powered security threats are simply an excuse for the company to retreat from its open source commitments.
The decision by Cal.com also highlights the rapidly evolving landscape of software development and the increasing importance of AI in this space. As AI continues to transform the way we develop and use software, it is essential that companies like Cal.com adapt and evolve their approaches to security and transparency.
In particular, the recent surge in open source vulnerabilities has highlighted the need for more effective security measures. According to Black Duck's 2026 Open Source Security and Risk Analysis (OSSRA) paper, there was a 107% surge in open source vulnerabilities per codebase, with many experts attributing this increase to the rapid pace of software development.
However, Cal.com's decision also raises questions about the role of AI in mitigating these risks. While it is true that AI-powered security threats are becoming increasingly sophisticated, it is also possible that companies like Cal.com could benefit from more effective collaboration and sharing of intelligence with the developer community.
Ultimately, the impact of Cal.com's decision will depend on how the company chooses to implement its new proprietary license. If the company can find ways to share its code and collaborate with the developer community in a transparent and secure manner, then this decision may ultimately prove to be beneficial for all parties involved. However, if Cal.com continues to retreat from its open source commitments, then this decision could have far-reaching consequences for the broader software ecosystem.
Cal.com's decision to abandon its AGPL license has sent shockwaves throughout the developer community, raising questions about the company's commitment to security and transparency in the face of AI-powered security threats.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/Ais-Impact-on-Open-Source-Code-Security-A-Reevaluation-of-Calcoms-Decision-ehn.shtml
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2026/04/26/opinion_column/
https://www.theregister.com/2026/04/26/opinion_column/
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/open-source-isnt-a-security-boon-fd5d5a2e
Published: Sun Apr 26 05:51:21 2026 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
