Right to Repair Fundraiser Goal Reached; Give More to Accelerate our Work!

[Software Freedom Conservancy]

URL:       https://sfconservancy.org/news/2026/jul/16/software-right-to-repair-baltobu-fundraiser-succes/
Fediverse: https://social.sfconservancy.org/notice/B8Ov79ZrYpYL8NIaQ4


                   RIGHT TO REPAIR FUNDRAISER GOAL REACHED
                      Give More to Accelerate our Work!

In May, Software Freedom Conservancy announced¹ a comprehensive response to
Bambu Lab's AGPL violations. This included a fundraiser to support specific
Right to Repair work that would help protect the rights enshrined in copyleft
in the 3D printing community. A few days remain in the fundraiser, yet we
happily announce that we've already hit our goal of raising US$250,007!
Thanks to everyone who has supported us during this fundraiser. This success
highlights that our community understands how critical copylefted firmware
and software is for 3D printers (and elsewhere).

Copyleft is the crucial FOSS licensing component that grants users and
consumers ownership over their own technology. We thank the 3D printing
community for embracing copyleft in general (and the AGPLv3 in particular)
early in its history. Your enthusiasm for software freedom inspires
us. Thanks to your donations, we now have the resources to evaluate the best
steps¹ in our Baltobu project² to bring software freedom quickly to Bambu Lab
3D printer owners. Today, we launch a traditional FOSS mailing list for the
Baltobu project³ and we welcome everyone to subscribe!

We are also thrilled to announce that we are hiring a staff attorney to help
us prepare and litigate future lawsuits we may need to bring⁴. We never seek
litigation as a first tactic⁵, but we recognize the importance of the legal
system as one of the equalizers of power. Sometimes, impact litigation⁶ is
the best vehicle for substantive change to protect consumers' software right
to repair. Companies increasingly refuse to follow the pro-user terms of
copyleft licenses and contracts, despite repeated requests and demands for
better behavior. This leaves lawsuits⁶ as our only option. As we move into a
world with more enshrined Rights to Repair, we know that this addition to our
team will enable us to further improve users' relationship with their
technology.

Thanks again to all of you who supported us already. Our fundraiser continues
until July 18ᵗʰ, 2026. If you are able: the best way to support us is with a
recurring Sustainer donation⁷. Regular support is critical for a small
organization like ours, and we thank our donors again.


References:

¹ https://sfconservancy.org/news/2026/may/18/bambu-studio-3d-printer-agpl-violation-response/
² https://f.sfconservancy.org/baltobu
³ https://lists.sfconservancy.org/mailman/listinfo/baltobu
⁴ https://sfconservancy.org/hiring/
⁵ https://sfconservancy.org/copyleft-compliance/principles.html#litigation-last-resort
⁶ https://sfconservancy.org/vizio
⁷ https://sfconservancy.org/sustainer/