Blender has been accepting corporate donations for years.
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Blender has been accepting corporate donations for years. I’ve personally managed most of the relationships and agreements that resulted in various announcements (Netflix Animation Studio, Wacom, Pico, AWS, Apple, and many more). Together with the growing amount of individual donations and small and medium corporations, this funding has allowed the project to thrive and keep growing. 1/8
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Blender has been accepting corporate donations for years. I’ve personally managed most of the relationships and agreements that resulted in various announcements (Netflix Animation Studio, Wacom, Pico, AWS, Apple, and many more). Together with the growing amount of individual donations and small and medium corporations, this funding has allowed the project to thrive and keep growing. 1/8
When a major Dev Fund membership is announced, it usually raises two types of concerns: corporate control, and ethical alignment. 2/8
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When a major Dev Fund membership is announced, it usually raises two types of concerns: corporate control, and ethical alignment. 2/8
Dev Fund membership agreement templates are public and can be checked. There is no influence or strings attached to the development process. Ultimately, this comes down to the Blender Foundation track record of sticking to its mission, goals, and community focus. I’m proud of that track record. 3/8
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Dev Fund membership agreement templates are public and can be checked. There is no influence or strings attached to the development process. Ultimately, this comes down to the Blender Foundation track record of sticking to its mission, goals, and community focus. I’m proud of that track record. 3/8
Corporate control is also balanced by individuals. By checking Blender Foundation’s annual reports, you can see that there is an effort to match the amounts, and not depend on a single large supporter. 4/8
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Corporate control is also balanced by individuals. By checking Blender Foundation’s annual reports, you can see that there is an effort to match the amounts, and not depend on a single large supporter. 4/8
On the ethical concerns. Corporations that provide funding to Blender choose to support Blender’s mission (directly or indirectly). However, Blender does not need to take any action towards those companies, or support their goals in any way. Blender has historically focused on achieving its mission, and not on obstructing or impeding other’s goals, and this is an important part of its identity and one of the reasons for its diverse user base. 5/8
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On the ethical concerns. Corporations that provide funding to Blender choose to support Blender’s mission (directly or indirectly). However, Blender does not need to take any action towards those companies, or support their goals in any way. Blender has historically focused on achieving its mission, and not on obstructing or impeding other’s goals, and this is an important part of its identity and one of the reasons for its diverse user base. 5/8
We all have different thresholds and value systems when it comes to judging corporations. In my personal view, Anthropic is no different than other large corporations that are part of the Development Fund. But I do know, and respect, that for many it’s not the same. 6/8
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We all have different thresholds and value systems when it comes to judging corporations. In my personal view, Anthropic is no different than other large corporations that are part of the Development Fund. But I do know, and respect, that for many it’s not the same. 6/8
In the case of the Development Fund, showing the logo (at mutual discretion) or providing a point of contact in the organization can be considered a form or relationship. This is why we chose to shift Anthropic’s Development Fund membership into a donation, which requires no agreement or formal relationship. The money still goes towards Blender’s mission, unconditionally. 7/8
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In the case of the Development Fund, showing the logo (at mutual discretion) or providing a point of contact in the organization can be considered a form or relationship. This is why we chose to shift Anthropic’s Development Fund membership into a donation, which requires no agreement or formal relationship. The money still goes towards Blender’s mission, unconditionally. 7/8
Besides a few very kind, concerned and constructive takes, it’s been concerning to see so many antisocial reactions to the original announcement. It looks like social media is tearing us apart. I hope more people consider getting involved and supporting the Blender project in the future, feeling confident that their contribution will matter. 8/8
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Besides a few very kind, concerned and constructive takes, it’s been concerning to see so many antisocial reactions to the original announcement. It looks like social media is tearing us apart. I hope more people consider getting involved and supporting the Blender project in the future, feeling confident that their contribution will matter. 8/8
@fsiddi While I do share the Blender community's general concerns/skepticism regarding generative AI companies, many of the initial reactions were indeed a bit "knee-jerk" and not constructive at all. Thank you for explaining everything clearly. I'll continue supporting Blender via the dev fund.
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Besides a few very kind, concerned and constructive takes, it’s been concerning to see so many antisocial reactions to the original announcement. It looks like social media is tearing us apart. I hope more people consider getting involved and supporting the Blender project in the future, feeling confident that their contribution will matter. 8/8
@fsiddi
Here you are, still entirely missing the point.Social media didn't do this. YOU did this.
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Besides a few very kind, concerned and constructive takes, it’s been concerning to see so many antisocial reactions to the original announcement. It looks like social media is tearing us apart. I hope more people consider getting involved and supporting the Blender project in the future, feeling confident that their contribution will matter. 8/8
@fsiddi I'm sorry to hear that. Social media is a hard place (although Mastodon tends to be a bit more... human?).
I read the community's reaction as genuine fear that's growing in our society. What will AI do to our jobs? Our environment? To the things we love to do? To the future of our kids?
Blender has always been a bastion of human values and I think it's hard to think of a 'business' that's further removed from AI companies. Perhaps that distance and expectation fueled the reaction.
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Besides a few very kind, concerned and constructive takes, it’s been concerning to see so many antisocial reactions to the original announcement. It looks like social media is tearing us apart. I hope more people consider getting involved and supporting the Blender project in the future, feeling confident that their contribution will matter. 8/8
@fsiddi I'm glad that you have considered the feedback from the community and are taking actions. Following the new announcement and your statements here, I do still have some questions. You state that "Blender does not need to take any action towards those companies, or support their goals in any way" and that you will have to tackle how generative AI will be treated in the context of Blender in general. Prior to the announcement of Anthropic as a corporate patron, Campbell implemented an MCP server addon (https://projects.blender.org/lab/blender_mcp), which was also referenced in Anthropics press release (https://www.anthropic.com/news/claude-for-creative-work). Am I correct to assume then that this was done on the own volition of the team and not at as some form of collaboration with Anthropic? Is the continuations of projects related to generative AI like this being reconsidered?
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@fsiddi I'm glad that you have considered the feedback from the community and are taking actions. Following the new announcement and your statements here, I do still have some questions. You state that "Blender does not need to take any action towards those companies, or support their goals in any way" and that you will have to tackle how generative AI will be treated in the context of Blender in general. Prior to the announcement of Anthropic as a corporate patron, Campbell implemented an MCP server addon (https://projects.blender.org/lab/blender_mcp), which was also referenced in Anthropics press release (https://www.anthropic.com/news/claude-for-creative-work). Am I correct to assume then that this was done on the own volition of the team and not at as some form of collaboration with Anthropic? Is the continuations of projects related to generative AI like this being reconsidered?
@robertguetzkow the MCP project started before any conversation with Anthropic (already last year). You can probably find design notes from Dalai back then, and there were definitely internal conversations and demos from last year's Siggraph. Of course Anthropic expressed interest in the work and we talked about it. This is a project for a reason: no guaranteed future support, merge into blender, etc. The upcoming AI policies will cover this topic.
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@robertguetzkow the MCP project started before any conversation with Anthropic (already last year). You can probably find design notes from Dalai back then, and there were definitely internal conversations and demos from last year's Siggraph. Of course Anthropic expressed interest in the work and we talked about it. This is a project for a reason: no guaranteed future support, merge into blender, etc. The upcoming AI policies will cover this topic.
@fsiddi Thank you for taking the time to respond Francesco! I'll keep an eye out for the decisions made and will resume my contribution to the development fund.
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