Commonhaus Foundation
Commonhaus Foundation is a U.S. 501(c)(6) non-profit providing governance, fiscal sponsorship, trademark management, and succession planning to roughly 25 open source projects — primarily Java/JVM libraries — serving experienced maintainers and, through its OSSI initiative, enterprises running end-of-life open source.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2024
- HeadquartersWindermere, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Commonhaus Foundation does
Commonhaus Foundation (CF) is a U.S. non-profit membership corporation incorporated in Florida under Section 617 of Florida State law and operating with 501(c)(6) tax-exempt status. Founded in 2024 by Erin Schnabel, Ken Finnigan, and Cesar Saavedra and inspired by the legacy of Codehaus, the foundation provides governance, fiscal sponsorship, legal scaffolding, trademark management, and succession planning for open source projects, anchored by a "minimum viable governance" philosophy that prioritizes project autonomy over top-down mandates. Its technical footprint is non-proprietary: it runs no API or developer platform of its own, instead leveraging GitHub for collaboration, OpenCollective and GitHub Sponsors for fiscal hosting, and a dedicated Gradle Develocity instance for build observability, with email routing handled through ForwardEmail.
The foundation serves open source project maintainers — primarily experienced developers whose projects have outgrown heavyweight governance models — with a portfolio of roughly 25 member projects concentrated in the Java/JVM ecosystem (Hibernate, Quarkus, Debezium, WildFly, Jackson, Micronaut) and recently extended to Kotlin/Android tooling (OkHttp, Okio, Retrofit, SQLDelight via the lysine.dev banner), Rust storage (SlateDB), and Kafka-infrastructure middleware (Kroxylicious). A second, enterprise-facing segment was opened in March 2026 through the Open Source Sustainability Initiative (OSSI), which provides CVE remediation, migration assistance, and compliance/EOL support to companies running unmaintained open source components.
Revenue is generated through three streams: corporate sponsorships and donations (e.g., Gradle's in-kind Develocity support, GitHub Sponsors and OpenCollective contributions), nominal individual membership dues billed annually, and unit-priced trademark services (e.g., ~$1,200 for a U.S. single-class registration, ~$350 for transfers or additional categories). The foundation is fully remote with no physical office, uses no paid advertising, and distributes its services globally through self-serve website/GitHub channels complemented by direct fiscal sponsorship agreements for larger projects.
Commonhaus Foundation firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Commonhaus Foundation
- Legal name
- Commonhaus Foundation
- Website
- https://commonhaus.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2024
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Commonhaus Foundation is a U.S. 501(c)(6) non-profit providing governance, fiscal sponsorship, trademark management, and succession planning to roughly 25 open source projects — primarily Java/JVM libraries — serving experienced maintainers and, through its OSSI initiative, enterprises running end-of-life open source.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Commonhaus Foundation industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Open Source Foundation Governance Services
- NAICS
- Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Business Associations (81391)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Association Compliance, Governance & Board Support Services (BPAJAHAN)
Keywords
Where Commonhaus Foundation is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Windermere
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Commonhaus Foundation business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Sponsorships and Donations: The foundation accepts sponsorships and donations through platforms like GitHub Sponsors and OpenCollective. Corporate sponsors like Gradle provide both funding and in-kind support (Develocity access). Individual supporters can contribute through the discord server or become members.
- Membership Dues: Nominal membership dues support administrative tasks. Annual renewal reaffirms commitment to CF values and policies. The foundation also charges administrative fees from project restricted funds.
- Trademark and IP Services: Projects pay for trademark registration, renewal, and protection costs from their restricted funds. These costs include U.S. Single Trademark Registration (~$1,200), transfers (~$350), and non-U.S. registration (varies by jurisdiction).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Trademark Registration Services |
| Subscription | Annual | Individual Membership |
| Usage-based | Monthly | Administrative Fees |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Commonhaus Foundation product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Commonhaus Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides governance, fiscal sponsorship, legal scaffolding, trademark management, and succession planning for established open source projects. It hosts 25+ member projects (primarily Java/JVM libraries and frameworks such as Hibernate, Quarkus, Debezium, WildFly, Micronaut, OkHttp, and Jackson) and offers a low-touch, community-first governance model under 501(c)(6) tax-exempt status. Its secondary offering is the Open Source Sustainability Initiative (OSSI), which helps enterprises manage end-of-life open source software and CVE remediation.
Product overview
The Commonhaus Foundation is a nonprofit organization providing governance infrastructure and fiscal sponsorship for open source projects. Rather than a single product, it offers a portfolio of services including fiscal sponsorship, legal scaffolding, trademark management, succession planning, and minimal viable governance. The foundation hosts over 30 member projects spanning Java/JVM ecosystem libraries and frameworks including Hibernate ORM, Quarkus, Debezium, Micronaut, WildFly, OkHttp, Jackson JSON, SmallRye MicroProfile implementations, and many other established open source projects. The foundation's core value proposition is providing a neutral, stable home for open source projects without imposing heavy governance overhead.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Open Source Sustainability Initiative (OSSI): Initiative launched in 2026 to help enterprises manage open-source software projects reaching end-of-life, providing CVE remediation, migration assistance, and compliance support.
Products and services
- Fiscal Sponsorship Services Provides fiscal sponsorship for open source projects, managing restricted funds, handling donations and sponsorships, and ensuring financial transparency and compliance with tax-exempt status.
- Governance and Legal Scaffolding Offers governance frameworks, legal scaffolding, trademark management, and succession planning for open source projects. Provides minimal viable governance that respects project autonomy.
- Trademark Registration and IP Services Provides trademark registration, renewal, transfer, and protection services for hosted open source projects. Pricing includes U.S. Single Trademark Registration at ~$1,200 USD, additional category at +$350 USD, and U.S. Trademark Transfer at $350 USD.
- Open Source Sustainability Initiative (OSSI) Enterprise-facing program that helps organizations manage open source projects reaching end-of-life. Provides CVE remediation, migration assistance, and compliance support to address unpatched vulnerabilities in EOL open source software.
- Membership Program Provides membership structure with nominal annual dues that support administrative tasks. Annual renewal reaffirms commitment to foundation values and policies.
Quantifiable outcome
- 75% CI build time reduction for Quarkus teams using Develocity
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Commonhaus Foundation
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Commonhaus Foundation technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
Commonhaus Foundation partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Jesse WilsoncoreJesse Wilson joins Commonhaus as leader and primary maintainer of lysine.dev projects (OkHttp, Okio, Retrofit, SQLDelight). Previously at Square (now Block). Contributed to Glazed Lists, Guava, and Paparazzi. Works on Wasmo in Kitchener-Waterloo, Canada.
- Jake WhartoncoreJake Wharton joins Commonhaus as leader and primary maintainer of lysine.dev projects. Android developer at Skylight, habitual open source contributor. Lives in Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
- Eclipse FoundationminorScott Stark appointed as Eclipse Foundation liaison (officer role). Manages relationships with projects providing implementations of Jakarta or Microprofile specifications. TCK certification conversations ongoing.
- Gradle, Inc.coreGradle provides a dedicated Develocity instance to the Commonhaus Foundation, offering toolchain observability, build and test acceleration, and rapid troubleshooting features. Several projects (Hibernate, Quarkus, Morphia) already achieved significant build time reductions (50-75%) using Develocity. Hans Dockter, CEO of Gradle, stated CF represents a visionary model for sustainably self-governed OSS projects.
- GitHub SponsorscoreFiscal host platform enabling projects to receive sponsorships and donations. CF simplifies funding process by connecting projects to this platform.
- OpenCollectivecoreFiscal hosting platform used to manage restricted funds for hosted projects. Collective created for each project's financial management including contributions and expenses.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Commonhaus Foundation competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Eclipse Foundation: Non-profit foundation governing Eclipse IDE, Jakarta EE, MicroProfile, and many of CF's own member projects (Quarkus, WildFly, SmallRye, RESTEasy). CF maintains a liaison relationship with Eclipse while positioning as a more lightweight alternative governance home.
- Apache Software Foundation: Long-established non-profit providing governance, legal scaffolding, and fiscal sponsorship for open source projects. CF explicitly positions itself as a low-touch alternative to Apache, and several hosted projects (Quarkus, Infinispan, Narayana) have Apache heritage.
- Python Software Foundation: 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to the Python language ecosystem, providing fiscal, legal, and governance support. CF plans to expand into Python projects, making PSF a future-facing peer in the same funding-and-governance niche for a different language community.
- Software Freedom Conservancy: Non-profit fiscal sponsor and advocacy organization for free and open source software projects. Comparable in offering fiscal sponsorship, legal support, and governance infrastructure, though with a stronger copyleft and policy-advocacy orientation.
- OpenJS Foundation: Linux Foundation sub-foundation supporting JavaScript and adjacent runtimes and frameworks through fiscal sponsorship and governance. Comparable to CF in providing minimal-overhead governance for established OSS projects at smaller scale than its parent.
- Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF): Linux Foundation sub-foundation hosting cloud-native open source projects under a vendor-neutral governance model. CF names CNCF as a competitor for maintainers seeking lightweight governance; both target experienced OSS communities at scale.
Broad incumbents
- Linux Foundation: Largest umbrella non-profit for open source projects, providing fiscal sponsorship, governance, and event infrastructure across Linux, cloud-native, AI, and many other domains. CF competes for the same maintainer and corporate sponsor pool on a smaller scale.
Others
- Open Collective: Fiscal host platform used by CF itself to manage project restricted funds. Acts as both infrastructure partner and adjacent alternative for projects weighing standalone OpenCollective usage versus joining CF for added legal scaffolding and governance.
Regional players
- Rust Foundation: Non-profit foundation supporting the Rust language ecosystem with fiscal sponsorship, trademark management, and governance. Not directly competing today but a relevant comparable given CF's stated intent to grow into Rust projects (already hosts SlateDB).
Emerging players
- Tidelift: Commercial subscription service that pays open source maintainers and helps enterprises manage OSS risk, security, and compliance — overlapping with CF's OSSI/EOL remediation offering. A commercial counterpart that competes for enterprise OSS sustainability budgets.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Commonhaus Foundation social profiles
Digital presenceCommonhaus Foundation financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Commonhaus Foundation leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Commonhaus Foundation subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries15 records
Commonhaus Foundation funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Commonhaus Foundation M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Commonhaus Foundation
What does Commonhaus Foundation do?
Commonhaus Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides governance, fiscal sponsorship, legal scaffolding, trademark management, and succession planning for established open source projects. It hosts 25+ member projects (primarily Java/JVM libraries and frameworks such as Hibernate, Quarkus, Debezium, WildFly, Micronaut, OkHttp, and Jackson) and offers a low-touch, community-first governance model under 501(c)(6) tax-exempt status. Its secondary offering is the Open Source Sustainability Initiative (OSSI), which helps enterprises manage end-of-life open source software and CVE remediation.
Is Commonhaus Foundation a public or private company?
Commonhaus Foundation is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Commonhaus Foundation founded?
Commonhaus Foundation was founded in 2024. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Commonhaus Foundation based?
Commonhaus Foundation is headquartered in Windermere, United States, in the North America region.
How does Commonhaus Foundation make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Sponsorships and Donations are the primary driver. The others are membership Dues and trademark and IP Services.
Who are Commonhaus Foundation's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Eclipse Foundation, Apache Software Foundation, Python Software Foundation, Software Freedom Conservancy, OpenJS Foundation and Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF). Linux Foundation is listed as a broad incumbent. Open Collective is listed as an others. Rust Foundation is listed as a regional player. Tidelift is listed as an emerging player.
Does Commonhaus Foundation have an API?
No public API is recorded for Commonhaus Foundation.
What industry is Commonhaus Foundation in?
Commonhaus Foundation's product category is Open Source Foundation Governance Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAKAA, Private Foundations, with a secondary code of BPAJAHAN, Association Compliance, Governance & Board Support Services. Its NAICS code is 813211 and its SIC code is 8600.