Long-Term Support Program for Bitcoin Core Developers

OpenSats is pleased to announce a new long-term support (LTS) program for Bitcoin Core developers and similar Load-Bearing Internet People.¹ This grant program is designed to provide financial support for developers who are working on critical infrastructure for the bitcoin network.

The LTS program is a new initiative from OpenSats and is distinct from our regular grant program, which is more expansive in scope. It is also distinct from OpenSats' website listings, which allows reviewed open-source projects to receive tax-deductible donations via OpenSats. The LTS program is specifically designed to provide long-term support for developers who are working on critical open-source infrastructure in and around bitcoin.

Having a longer time horizon than regular grants, the LTS program is geared towards long-term stability for grantees, with a minimum grant duration of 12 months and possible grant durations of two years or longer. This will allow developers to focus on their work without having to worry about financial constraints.

To be eligible for the LTS program, applicants must:

• have a track record of quality contributions
• be mission-driven and self-motivated
• be able to work in public
• be bitcoin-only

Applications for the LTS program are now open: https://opensats.org/apply/

The first recipient of an OpenSats LTS Grant is Marco Falke, a long-term maintainer and contributor of Bitcoin Core with thousands of contributions over many years. Marco will continue to focus on testing and quality assurance, as well as maintenance and review, helping to make sure that the Bitcoin Core software is as solid as it can be. You can read more about his contributions here.

We appreciate all the hard work that goes into building and maintaining critical open-source infrastructure. It is a hard and often thankless job. We hope that we can play a role in closing the gaps in bitcoin open-source funding, and we look forward to working with contributors in the future.

OpenSats aims to be an additional pillar of the increasingly solid funding landscape in and around bitcoin. We have learned a lot from the programs of the past and aim to join Brink, Spiral, Chaincode, HRF, and other successful grant programs to support those who build the tools that ensure the protection of individual liberties in our digital world.

We are committed to supporting the development of bitcoin. The LTS program is a new way for OpenSats to support long-term contributors who are building, maintaining, testing, researching, and reviewing critical software.

We encourage all qualified developers to apply for the LTS program. Together, we can build a stronger and more resilient bitcoin network.

Footnotes

1. "An LBIP is a person who maintains the software for a critical Internet service or library, and has to do it without organizational support or a budget backing him up." —Eric S. Raymond ↩