Jonathan Riddell, the long-time Kubuntu project lead, has announced that he is leaving KDE after 25 years. If you didn't know him, his work helped bring the Plasma desktop to millions and shaped the KDE ecosystem through both Kubuntu and KDE Neon.
Jonathan helped build Kubuntu to make KDE more accessible to everyday Linux users. After Canonical stopped officially supporting it, he turned his attention to KDE Neon. Neon allowed KDE to deliver the latest Plasma releases directly to users, becoming a platform for testing, development, and adoption. Through both projects, Jonathan ensured KDE remained relevant and approachable.
In his farewell, he explained why he felt it was time to move on. KDE and KDE Neon's development was supported by Blue Systems. The company folded business due to the ill health of its founder. KDE developer Nate Graham created a new company, Tech Paladin, to take on the business. Riddell wanted the new company to run as a cooperative. He cited examples like Igalia, a worker-owned open source consultancy, as a style that was never adopted.
According to Jonathan, he saw decision-making increasingly concentrated, particularly under Nate Graham, whose approach emphasized centralized control.
Jonathan said he was increasingly sidelined. His proposals for a democratic structure in Techpaladin, the company meant to continue the work after Blue Systems scaled back, were ignored. He found himself excluded from decisions on projects he had built and led for years.
Jonathan closed his farewell blog by sharing the following image and message:
But in the end I lost my friends, my colleagues, my job, my career and my family. What’s a spod who just tried to do the right thing for society to do? Dunno. For now, if you want me, you can find me surfing the endless wave whenever the sun sets over my digital nomad coliving paddleshack at the end of the world.
Addendum: A previous version of this article called Jonathan Riddall the founder of Kubuntu. Which is factually inaccurate; he had been one of the earliest contributors to the Kubuntu project.
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