Mozilla has officially joined the UN-backed Digital Public Goods Alliance (DPGA), deepening its commitment to open-source technology and global digital equity.
The move underscores Mozilla’s ongoing efforts to promote trustworthy AI and digital tools designed in the public interest.
The DPGA is a multi-stakeholder initiative launched to accelerate progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through the discovery, development, and promotion of digital public goods (DPGs). These goods include open-source software, open data, open AI models, and open content that meet strict criteria for privacy, inclusivity, and ethical use.
Mozilla, best known for its Firefox web browser and longstanding advocacy for internet openness, joins the DPGA at a time when the tech world is reckoning with growing concerns over proprietary AI systems, data monopolies, and the exclusionary nature of closed digital ecosystems.
The DPGA recognizes projects that align with its values, and Mozilla’s Common Voice has already earned recognition as a certified digital public good. This project has amassed over 33,000 hours of multilingual voice data, collected with user consent, and made openly available to developers and researchers working on speech recognition technologies.
As part of the DPGA’s 2025 roadmap, Mozilla will contribute across three key areas:
- Promoting open source in the DPG ecosystem – Through global advocacy, policy engagement, and research, Mozilla will highlight the societal and economic value of open source technologies, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence.
- Strengthening digital commons – Mozilla will continue to support and grow its portfolio of open source projects, from Common Voice to foundational tools like Firefox and emerging efforts in ethical AI development.
- Funding for public interest tech – Mozilla announced a new grantmaking program launching in Fall 2025 to incubate community-driven projects that align with the principles of digital public goods. The goal is to help these projects reach long-term sustainability by finding a “product-community fit.”
President of Mozilla, Mark Surman, emphasized the broader social mission behind the announcement: “Open source AI and open data aren’t just about tech. They’re about access to technology and progress for people everywhere.”
Coinciding with the DPGA news, Mozilla also unveiled updates on its AI development roadmap within the Firefox browser. Firefox VP Ajit Varma detailed the company’s latest efforts to integrate AI while upholding user autonomy and transparency.
Features like the AI chatbot sidebar and “Shake to Summarize” on iOS have already debuted, and Mozilla is now piloting an “AI Window,” a user-controlled interface that allows optional AI interaction without enforcing vendor lock-in or algorithmic overreach.
Leave a Reply