There is increasing pressure on Oracle to hand over control of MySQL to an independent foundation. A group of experienced database professionals, developers, and long-time contributors have signed an open letter urging this change. Their main concern is that MySQL’s development has slowed down, and its future roadmap isn’t clear, especially as data ecosystems become more AI-focused.

Community Calls for Change

The open letter has garnered at least 248 signatures from a diverse group of experts, including database administrators, architects, and developers. These signatories come from companies and projects like Percona, MariaDB, PlanetScale, and major tech firms including Zoho, DigitalOcean, Vultr, and Pinterest. They argue that Oracle’s management of MySQL’s updates has hurt its market position.

Many believe that Oracle’s slow and limited updates have caused businesses to shift toward alternative solutions like PostgreSQL. This is especially true as AI workloads require more modern features for data consolidation and processing. The signatories feel that MySQL is falling behind because Oracle’s updates are often private and lack the features needed for today’s AI applications.

Concerns Over Stagnation and Fragmentation

Vadim Tkachenko, co-founder of Percona and one of the letter’s authors, told a tech publication that enterprise concern about MySQL’s future under Oracle has reached a “critical” point. Many organizations now look to forks and cloud providers, such as AWS, for new features and innovation. However, this trend creates confusion because these forks often aren’t compatible with each other or the original MySQL code.

This fragmentation makes it harder for companies to migrate or adopt new features, which hampers overall progress. Tkachenko emphasized that while forks and cloud solutions can bring innovation, they also deepen the divide, making it challenging for MySQL to evolve as a unified project.

AI Workloads Push MySQL Out of the Race

Experts agree that MySQL’s slow development is pushing users toward alternatives like PostgreSQL. Stephanie Walter from HyperFRAME Research notes that the database layer is now a key part of AI systems. When developers see that MySQL isn’t keeping up with modern needs, they tend to switch to more active and transparent options.

Similarly, Tony Baer, chief analyst at dbinsight, pointed out that forks of MySQL often create vendor lock-in because of unique extensions. This lock-in makes it difficult for companies to migrate later, further discouraging reliance on MySQL’s core code. As a result, the community is calling for a new, independent foundation to revitalize the project and foster faster innovation.

Overall, the movement reflects a broader desire for a more open, transparent, and agile MySQL ecosystem that can better serve the growing demands of AI-driven data workloads. The community hopes that by establishing an independent foundation, MySQL can regain its momentum and better compete in today’s fast-changing tech landscape.

Inspired by

• https://www.infoworld.com/article/4134394/community-push-intensifies-to-free-mysql-from-oracles-control-amid-stagnation-fears.html

Sources

• 3306-db.org
• percona.com
• stackoverflow.co
• percona.com
• lefred.be