It wasn’t actually that long ago that I announced my move from GitHub to Codeberg.
I have now decided to end my sustaining membership with Codeberg e.V. and move my repositories to Codefloe.
The reason for this is the recent change to the Terms of Use, which makes it clear that projects predominantly using generative AI are no longer welcome on Codeberg.
Before you grab your pitchforks, light your torches, and pay me a visit: I love my craft. I still prefer programming myself rather than orchestrating agents.
So why does the change to the Terms of Use bother me so much?
Well, firstly: Codeberg prohibits the use of any form of generative AI. However, generative AI is more than just getting Claude to churn out heaps of program code. Machine translations into other languages or the automatic generation of documentation are also LLM applications that generate numerous files.
Example: My short novel project Infinisomnia consists of German episodes that I wrote entirely myself. Alongside these, however, are other language versions that were machine-translated. Quantitatively, the vast majority of files in the project are therefore AI-generated, and at best, the project is now only tolerated on Codeberg. That was the main reason for my departure.
Secondly: Regardless of how one feels about generative AI, LLMs are not going to disappear, and many developers have found advantages in using them. It should be left to the maintainers to decide which tools they choose and which they do not want. A platform-wide ban refuses a deeper engagement with the new reality and instead drives the division of the community.
Codeberg also justifies the change by stating that there are many “slop” projects cluttering up their hard drives. This is understandable, but a ban will do little as long as users can continue to dump their slop onto the platform until they get caught. However, Codeberg already had house rules and the corresponding options for sanctions before the change.
Of course, Codeberg is entitled to do whatever they want with their platform. On the other hand, it is also my right to leave a platform (and an association) when our requirements and goals diverge.
I wish Codeberg all the best. It was a wonderful experience.
Image: The “Forgejo” mascot by David Revoy (CC-BY 4.0)