Why I Think the GPL Needs Better Enforcement in Hardware
I have spent the better part of a decade working with embedded Linux systems. From routers to medical devices, from smart home hubs to industrial controllers, the GNU General Public License is everywhere in the hardware world. And yet, compliance with it remains staggeringly poor. This is not a marginal concern. The GPL is one of the foundational legal instruments that makes open source sustainable, and when companies treat it as a suggestion rather than a license, the entire ecosystem suffers. The Scope of the Problem Let us start with some blunt facts. The Software Freedom Conservancy has documented hundreds of violations across dozens of companies. Many of these are repeat offenders. A router manufacturer ships a device with a modified Linux kernel and provides no source. A smart TV…








