Making the Critical Pivot from Closed to Open Source with Federico Wengi

The Business of Open Source

Today I’m joined by Federico Wengi, who is a Partner at SquareOne VC. In this conversation, Federico sheds light on the conversations he’s had with many companies who consider making the pivot from a closed-source business strategy to an open-source strategy. Federico explains why it’s so uncommon for businesses to make that pivot, and lays out the challenges businesses face when they consider taking on such a change. Federico also gives a great example of a company that did successfully complete the pivot to open source, and the choices they made that led to their success. Federico and I discuss why this is one pivot you can’t take back, and also why it won’t solve all your problems. Despite all that, Federico shares his optimism for the value of open source and the importance of at least considering this strategy when you need to make a change.

Highlights:

• Intro (00:00)
• I introduce Federico, who is a Partner at SquareOne (00:59)
• Federico describes his role at SquareOne and the areas of investment they focus on (01:28)
• What Federico typically sees when companies move from closed source to open source (04:42)
• How important conversations come up about business strategy and open source versus closed source (07:40)
• Why many companies end up not pursuing an open-source strategy (11:17)
• Federico tells the story of a company he worked with that made the leap from closed source to open source (15:03)
• The most critical things businesses have to do in order to utilize an open-source strategy (16:23)
• What decisions led to success in the company Federico helped shift from closed source to open source (18:09)
• The psychological challenges leaders face when considering making a pivot to open source (23:54)
• Federico shares the advice he would give to a founder who’s considering an open-source strategy (26:40)
• How you can connect with Federico (31:40)

Links:

Federico

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/federicowengi/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/federicowengi
• Company: https://squareone.vc/