Mark Porter

From Research to Reality: Why Open Source Is the Engine of AI | RAISE Summit 2026

Ion Stoica, Thomas Wolf, Dillon Rolnick, Eiso Kant, Robin Rombach, Mark Porter, Dylan Rolnick

Founders from Poolside, Databricks, Neuse Research, and Hugging Face, moderated by Mark Porter, convened to debate preventing AI monopoly through open-weight models rather than closed ecosystems. The panelists argued that open source remains the only viable path for critical sectors like robotics and scientific discovery while highlighting risks of geopolitical bias and regulatory lockout under current centralized control. Ultimately, the group emphasized a strategic shift toward commoditized infrastructure and real-world evaluation to avoid security fears and drive the next wave of physical and scientific breakthroughs.