Sovereign Tech Fund

Who can apply

• real users
• code under an OSI-approved or FSF Free/Libre license

What the form asks

• Application name: an application name
• Acknowledgements: notification emails, legal ability to sign contracts, free licensing, no duplicate funding: accept the four acknowledgements
• Project title: a project title
• Describe your project in a sentence.: a one-sentence description
• Describe your project more in-depth. Why is it critical?: why the project is critical
• Link to project repository: the repository link
• Link to project website: optional
• Provide a brief overview over your project's own, most important, dependencies.: the project's main dependencies
• Provide a brief overview of projects that depend on your technology.: projects that depend on it
• Which target groups does your project address (who are its users?) and how would they benefit from the activities proposed (directly and indirectly)?: users and how they benefit
• Describe a specific scenario for the use of your technology and how this meets the needs of your target groups.: a specific use scenario
• How was the work on the project made possible so far (structurally, financially, including volunteer work)? If applicable, list others sources of funding that you applied for and/or received.: how the work was funded so far
• What are the challenges you currently face in the maintenance of the technology?: current maintenance challenges
• What are possible alternatives to your project and how does your project compare to them?: alternatives and how you compare
• What do you plan to implement with the support from Sovereign Tech Fund?: objectives and activities
• How many hours do you estimate for these activities?: total estimated hours
• Estimate the cost of the work described in your application in numbers only (EUR).: the cost in EUR above 50,000
• In how many months will you perform the activities?: the number of months
• Who (maintainer, contributor, organization) would be most qualified to implement this work/receive the support and why?: who is best placed to do the work
• Your name/handle: your name or handle
• Link to your profile (optional): optional
• What is your role in this project?: your role
• If you are not the maintainer, are you in contact with the maintainer or the community around the technology? Do they know you plan or do this work? If yes, provide information on how you are aligned with them.: optional
• Country of residence of the person who will sign the contract.: the signer's country
• How did you hear about the Sovereign Tech Agency? (optional): optional

Rules

• Applications are accepted only through the online application platform, in German or English. No deadline is stated.
• The work must develop or maintain open digital base technologies. Development is the main focus; security audits and community events can be included when necessary.
• The cost of the work described must exceed EUR 50,000.
• Not eligible if other public entities already fund the same proposed activities.
• All code and documentation must be freely reusable, changeable and redistributable: OSI-approved or FSF Free/Libre licenses for code; no non-commercial or no-derivative clauses for documentation.
• Prototypes are not financed, and user-facing applications such as messaging apps or file storage are currently not sought.
• Reviewed on prevalence, relevance, vulnerability, public interest, planned activities and expertise. Expect an answer within 10 weeks; about 6 months from application to a potential contract start.

What they want now

Sovereign Tech Fund wants Libraries and package managers, Open implementations of communication protocols, Developer tools and encryption technologies