2026-11-03 –, Jasmine Stage 4
What keeps developers building after a hackathon? Mario Behling shares how FOSSASIA helped over 100,000 young people enter open source and built projects across 200+ repositories. Discover how a small team combines developer networks, automation, and human mentorship to sustain participation, and how AI changes the challenge of recognizing meaningful contributions.
But open source is more than code. It takes people who build, maintain, and support projects over time. Visit the Open Source Hub at Devcon 8 to meet open source contributors, connect with project maintainers, and explore opportunities in decentralized learning and mentorship.
Mario Behling is a technologist and entrepreneur with over two decades of experience in open source development and digital innovation. He is the co-founder of FOSSASIA, the open source community in Asia, which plays a key role in advancing the FOSS movement across the region. Mario has launched numerous open source initiatives and companies spanning software and hardware, and continues to promote open technologies through education, community building, and enterprise solutions. He is the CEO of OpnTec, a German open source company focused on sustainable tech, and advises international organizations including the UNESCO on digital transformation strategies. He also served as a board member of the Open Source Business Alliance Germany, supporting open source adoption across public and private sectors.