open-source

adjective

ˈō-pən-ˈsȯrs 

1

a

of software : having the source code freely available for possible modification and redistribution

an open-source operating system

b

: of, relating to, or promoting open-source software

the open-source movement/community

Instead, they opted for the open-source model, in which computer code is openly shared, allowing programmers to modify, improve and fix the software.

—Steve Lohr

2

a

: publicly available for use by the community at large

open-source images

The team uses open-source materials such as obituaries in local newspapers and cemetery visits for its count.

—Brendan Hoffman

b

: relating to or utilizing information that is publicly available

an open-source analysis

Since the advent of the internet, social media and smartphones, open-source intelligence has undergone a revolution as people willingly and publicly post vast amounts of information online. Actors outside of the traditional intelligence community have begun to take notice.

—Nick Waters

Examples of open-source in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In a statement following the SCO AI Cooperation Forum held in May, Beijing called on member states to work together in building a collaboration center for AI application, while pledging to promote open-source AI models and share advanced technologies. —Anniek Bao, CNBC, 2 Sep. 2025

However, the open-source robotics community has grappled with trade-offs. —Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 1 Sep. 2025

This open-source approach, essentially offering a free license, is critical to enabling organizations and individuals to develop their own AI and build towards an internet of agents not dominated by a single company or LLM. —Amy Guttman, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025

Just last week, Alibaba updated its own open-source video generating model, part of a string of recent upgrades that span the gamut from agentic AI services to chatbots. —Preston Fore, Fortune, 1 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1957, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for open-source

• counterforce
• intercourse
• nonrecourse
• reinforce
• watercourse
• bourse
• coarse
• course
• force
• gorse
• hoarse
• horse