Drupaljam 2025 Recap

It was a day packed with insightful sessions, fascinating keynotes, and great opportunities to connect with peers in the Drupal community. For me, the discussions and presentations around Artificial Intelligence were particularly exciting.

Can Open Source stay true to its roots?

The day kicked off with Dr. Melanie Rieback, CEO and co-founder of Radically Open Security, giving the opening keynote, “Post-Growth Entrepreneurship.”

If you’ve ever come across the “freemium” model and wondered how it really impacts the core of an open-source project – Melanie isn't afraid to ask the tough questions. She dug into why some fantastic open-source initiatives seem to lose their way over time. More importantly, she explored the tangible actions we can take to prevent this from happening, how we can build our projects to last, ensuring the open-source software that we create stays true to its purpose and remains a robust, accessible part of our shared digital commons for the long haul.

Melanie spoke about post-growth entrepreneurship and why it matters for the sustainability and independence of open-source projects. She looked at alternative business models and ways of running these projects, like steward ownership and using ‘golden shares’, which help protect their long-term values. The goal is to prevent these projects from being solely driven by profit, acquired by large corporations, or influenced by the pressures of traditional venture capital.

She explained that these alternatives are important to keep open-source tools available, supported, and truly part of the digital commons.

Breaking minds and making masterpieces: When AI challenges reality

Jeroen van der Most, also known as MOST, gave a captivating keynote entitled “Breaking minds – making masterpieces.” MOST is a pioneering artist and speaker in the global digital arts scene since 2010. He uses technologies like AI and quantum computing to create art that explores deeper connections with the natural world and reveals beauty from lost histories and distant futures, rather than using technology just for profit or quick attention.

In his keynote, MOST delved into the concept of a “Post-AI” world. He challenged us to think about how technology, potentially powered by quantum computing, might evolve beyond a mere human tool into an independent force, prompting a re-evaluation of digital innovation and the very meaning of being human. His work includes autonomous art and commissions for major organisations like Nvidia, Amnesty International, and Microsoft. It was a brilliant example of looking “beyond” the traditional boundaries of Drupal.

MOST shared an absolutely mind-bending personal story that could be straight out of a movie! He described learning that a painting similar to his work, but not created by him, fetched $3.2 million in Saudi Arabia. This revelation took him on a journey to locate “Diriyah Star Night,” which he eventually signed, turning the incident into a real-world case study on authenticity and value, highly relevant to discussions about AI and digital creation.

AI in Drupal: From new UIs to building your own agents

Throughout the day, various sessions touched upon how AI can enhance Drupal experiences, from content creation and management to personalisation and data analysis. It was inspiring to see the community actively exploring and discussing these new frontiers. I even had some fun playing around with AI tools, including the amazee.ai Drupal AI Provider, which we’ve been collaborating on – it's always great to see practical applications of these cutting-edge technologies happen within our beloved Drupal.

Jamie Abrahams, co-founder of FreelyGive and co-maintainer of the Drupal AI module, gave a session on “AI is the New UI – How We Are Building AI into Drupal CMS.” He discussed AI's rapid evolution into a new UI and the importance of community innovations such as the Model Context Protocol (MCP) for its effective use with Drupal.

Vincenzo Gambino delivered an engaging session on "AI Agents in Drupal CMS - Create your own!" He provided a hands-on look at how developers can build their own AI agents directly within Drupal, leveraging the “ai_agents” module. Vincenzo guided attendees through the fundamentals of agent creation, from initial coding to best practices for designing and coordinating multiple agents, as well as how to effectively test and evaluate their performance.

From Local Associations to a Global Federation: Drupal's next chapter

Beyond the technical sessions, I also had the valuable opportunity to participate in an important open discussion for the “Network of European Drupal Associations (NEDA) and the European Working Group.” As a board member of the Drupal Switzerland association, I was particularly interested in this session.

Imre Gmelig Meijling, from the Drupal Association Board, presented ongoing plans for establishing an “International Federation of Drupal Associations” - likely a Belgian AISBL (international non-profit association). This initiative aims to create a more globally distributed and sustainable model for stewarding critical assets like drupal.org and supporting the worldwide community. Newly elected NEDA representatives Marine Gandy and Joris Vercammen shared their perspectives on Europe's role in this evolving structure. The session, facilitated by Esmeralda Tijhoff, sparked a robust dialogue with many questions and viewpoints from audience members, covering crucial aspects like funding, the future role of the US-based Drupal Association, and NEDA's own operational needs. It was a compelling example of the Drupal community actively engaging to co-create its future, highlighting everyone’s commitment to the project's long-term health.

Energised and inspired: Taking Drupal “and beyond”

Drupaljam 2025 was a powerful reminder of the strength and forward-thinking nature of the Drupal community. The passion to learn, share, and push Drupal "and beyond" was evident in every conversation. I left feeling energised and excited for what the future holds, especially in the realm of AI within Drupal.

A huge thank you to the volunteer-driven organising team for putting together such a phenomenal event. I’m already looking forward to what 2026 will bring!