Relive The Tech People Want Summit: 2025 Documentation

People want technology for people.

Last week, the Open Knowledge Foundation hosted The Tech People Want Summit, bringing together 34 speakers from 19 countries to rethink how technology supports our work in conversational sessions.

This wasn’t a summit about coding, but focused on non-technical professionals – including data practitioners, communicators, project managers, and advocates. Once again, we demonstrated the power of bringing people together, with hundreds of participants contributing to an impressive level of engagement and conversation.

Here are three phrases said during the event that have resonated with our community:

🔫 In the past decade, consumer tech has become weapons.

🌗 Technology is neither a tool nor a determinist force, but rather a mediator.

🥉 We don’t need to be the winners.

To understand the context, follow the full documentation below, including video recordings now hosted at the Internet Archive. Whether you missed the event or want to revisit the discussions, this post serves as your complete reference.

Thank you to everyone who is making this community grow!

Day 1 – 8 July 2025

[Study Launch] Why Do People Want Open Data?

This roundtable launched the draft report Towards a Sustainable Data Commons Ecosystem with its authors, offering a community-centred vision for the future. We explored how collective care, shared resources, and solidarity – not data alone – will drive justice. Together, we imagined how a sustainable data commons can counter dominant systems and seed hope. With:

Solana Larsen – Editor & Co-author, Towards a Sustainable Data Commons Ecosystem Report
Dr Ana Méndez de Andés – Urbanist, researcher and policy analyst specialising in democratic governance and commoning processes
Semra Sonmez – MSc student at Strategy and Design for the Anthropocene, researcher on open science
Merrin Muhammed Ashraf – Research Associate, IT for Change
Jugal Mahabir – Programme Lead: Local Government, Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI)
Arturo Sánchez Pineda – Engineer at inait AI, former Researcher at CERN (CH), CNRS (FR), ICTP & INFN (IT)
Constanza Figueroa Bustos – amigashacker.club

Opening Remarks

The OKFN team presented The Tech We Want initiative — our ambitious project to reimagine the way technology is developed and utilised. We summarised the vision and activities that have brought us to this point, and outlined what to expect from the summit. With:

Renata Ávila – CEO, Open Knowledge Foundation
Patricio Del Boca – Tech Lead, Open Knowledge Foundation
Lucas Pretti – Communications & Advocacy Director, Open Knowledge Foundation

[Panel 1] Building Together: Simple Tech for Stronger Communities

In this panel, we explored how accessible, community-driven tools – from federated platforms to open-source communities – are empowering people to work and act together. Speakers shared real-world examples of low-barrier tech that fosters collaboration, strengthens networks, and helps communities solve problems. With:

Samantha Blickhan – Co-Director & Humanities Lead, Zooniverse
Malka Older – Executive Director, Global Voices
Andy Piper – Head of Communications, Mastodon
Olivier Schulbaum – Strategic Director, Platoniq Foundation
Ugo Vallauri – Co-Founder, The Restart Project, member of Right to Repair Europe

[Panel 2] How to Use AI Without Selling Your Soul (or Data)

In this panel, we examined how to harness AI’s power without compromising ethics, privacy, or human agency. Experts shared practical alternatives to extractive AI models, from privacy-preserving algorithms to open, community-governed systems. We explored real-world cases where AI serves the public good – whether in education, civic tech, journalism, and local governance – without exploiting user data or reinforcing bias. With:

B Cavello – Director, Emerging Technologies, Aspen Digital
Caroline Lindekamp – Head of Product Fact-checking, Correctiv
Jess Reia – Assistant Professor, Department of Data Science, University of Virginia
Prateek Sibal – Programme Specialist, Digital Policies and Digital Transformation Section, UNESCO

[Keynote] The Cloud People Want

The internet was meant to be open, decentralised, and empowering – yet today, a handful of corporations control the servers where our data, our tools, and even our digital identities are stored. This keynote challenged the status quo and present a vision for a better cloud: one that prioritizes privacy, user sovereignty, and true interoperability.

Frank Karlitschek – CEO & Founder, Nextcloud

Followed by a conversation with:

Renata Ávila – CEO, Open Knowledge Foundation

Day 2 – 9 July 2025

[Spotlight Sessions 1] Tech For Society

This session explored digital tools designed to bridge divides, act together on a human scale, and support reconciliation. With:

Nathan Coyle – Senior Peace Tech Advisor, Austrian Institute of Technology
Mallory Knodel – Executive Director & Founder, Social Web Foundation
Simona Levi – Founder, Xnet
Topuzogullari Sayat – Coordinator, Observatoire des armements / CDRPC

[Spotlight Sessions 2] Climate & Sustainability

Tech’s ecological footprint under scrutiny, with solutions from cooperatives to open-source climate justice tools. With:

Romina Colman – Product Owner, Open Data Editor (ODE)
Christian Medina – Manager, Global Programs, Open North | Nord Ouvert
Richard Muraya – Executive Director, The Demography Project
Manisha Priyadarshini – Interim Executive Director, ProgramEarth

[Spotlight Sessions 3] Community & Organising

From secure digital IDs to community tech partnerships, speakers share tools that amplify – rather than hinder – social change. With:

Olivia Dorey – Product Manager, Vaultie
Dr Kim Foale – Founder and Studio Lead, Geeks for Social Change
Emil Vincentz – Executive Director, Acter

[Keynote] Another Network Is Possible

This keynote dismantled the myth that mass data extraction is inevitable and reveal how decentralised infrastructure can redefine digital power structures. The talk explored how mixnets, zero-knowledge systems, and community-owned networks can create a web where anonymity isn’t a vulnerability — but a right.

Jaya Klara Brekke – Chief Strategy Officer, Nym

Followed by a conversation with:

Ksenia Ermoshina – Senior Researcher, Center for Internet and Society (CIS/CNRS)

You can also follow the two keynote speakers’ conversations in text format. They have been edited as part of the 100+ Conversations to inspire our new direction series: