Oracle aims to restore trust in MySQL with increased transparency, an open roadmap, and additional features in the Community Edition.
Oracle announces a new approach for MySQL, the open-source database it acquired in 2009 following the takeover of Sun Microsystems.
Months of criticism
The announcement follows months of criticism from the open-source community. Developers and users even discussed an independent governance model, fueled by dissatisfaction with Oracle’s approach and declining activity within the project.
Frederic Descamps, MySQL community manager at Oracle, promises more transparency and engagement. “Oracle will publish a public roadmap, facilitate contributions, and make work logs and bug reports more visible,” Descamps stated in an announcement. The company also intends to bring more developer features to the open-source MySQL Community Edition.
Focus on vector functions and AI
During a MySQL event, Oracle promised to move commercial features to the Community Edition, such as vector functions that are crucial for AI workloads. With this move, the company is attempting to win back developers.
The Register reported that Michael Widenius, founder of MySQL, previously expressed disappointment over job losses within the MySQL team. Vadim Tkachenko, CTO of Percona, even suggests that MySQL stands at a crossroads under Oracle’s management. Developers must choose between MySQL under Oracle or as part of a different model.
Oracle says it will release more details in a public webinar later this year. The question remains whether the community will be convinced or will opt for an alternative instead.