AI, Ethics, and Open Source: Why We Can’t Sit This One Out

Text that reads" AI, Ethics, and Open Source" with the image of a head within a head. The one on the inside looks like a circuit. This all sits on a blue background.

Last week the Drupal Association announced a new Strategic Initiative for Drupal AI. This announcement means that there will be funding, strategy, and organized people mapping the Drupal communities’ way forward using Artificial Intelligence.AI carries a lot of baggage. And it should. We’d be reckless not to ask hard questions about its impact on society and the environment. But the horse is already out of the barn. This isn’t the moment to sit on the sidelines. It’s time to get involved responsibly.

When we talk about ethical AI, we’re talking about building tools with intentionality. I wrote about this earlier in the year here, and the TL;DR hasn’t changed:

Transparency, Fairness, and Privacy are not optional.

Why Open Source Matters In This Space

One of the reasons I advocate for open source, especially in the AI space, is because transparency is built into its DNA. You can see what’s going on under the hood. That visibility makes it easier to identify bias, and while we can’t eliminate bias entirely, we can work to limit it. Open source helps us do that.

Privacy is equally non-negotiable. Companies like amazee.io are baking ethical principles into the infrastructure they manage, but ultimately, it’s on all of us to be responsible stewards of this technology.

We Need To Remember that AI Is a Tool

AI shouldn’t be about replacing people. It should be a force multiplier. It’s here to help us work more efficiently and solve bigger problems faster. But let’s not kid ourselves: AI will reshape how we work in the next 24 months. That’s not a doomsday scenario, it’s a wake-up call.

Everyone should learn a bit about prompt engineering. It’s not just a technical skill, it’s about understanding how these systems behave and making them work for you.

I’ll keep championing open source AI that respects user agency and avoids black-box decision-making.

The Environmental Reality

Yes, training and running large models consumes a massive amount of energy. That’s real. But rejecting AI because of its environmental footprint misses the bigger picture. The answer is to push harder on renewable energy adoption—not just as individuals, but in the platforms and providers we choose.

Case in point: Bedrock, Amazon Bedrock is a service from AWS that lets you use powerful AI models from companies like Anthropic without needing to manage any servers, is committed to 100% renewable energy by 2040. That’s not accidental. That’s alignment.

As leaders in the open source community (and in my case Drupal), we have influence. We can steer implementation decisions toward ethical, sustainable paths. But we also need policy change, and unfortunately, the current U.S. political climate is pushing in the opposite direction. I think we need regulation to guide this space. The EU is miles ahead of the US on that front.

Why This Is Important for Drupal (and Open Source)

The worst-case scenario isn’t that AI moves fast, it’s that we don’t engage, and allow the future to be shaped exclusively by large, private, unaccountable actors.

Drupal has always stood for openness, empowerment, and building together. If we bring those values into the AI space, we have a shot at creating tools that are not just powerful, but just.

Let’s not let that opportunity slip by.