2026-10-13 –, Create 1
AI is changing how software is created, shared, maintained and used, and potentially what we mean by “open” itself. For geospatial FOSS, the implications extend well beyond AI-generated code. This talk looks into some of the less-recognised medium and longer term implications and challenges that AI introduce. We discuss how AI could reshape reproducibility and provenance, lower barriers to software development, disrupt traditional pathways for learning and entering the field, and transform how open-source communities collaborate and contribute. At the same time, it creates opportunities to make geospatial software more accessible, adaptive and powerful. This talk explores both sides of this transition and asks a broader question: in a world where machines can increasingly write the code, what should remain distinctly human about open source?
Ana Basiri is Professor and Chair of Geospatial Data Science at the University of Glasgow, Director of the Centre for Data Science and AI, and a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow.