The binary blobs in the ESP HAL require more consideration. Can even ASF repositories host binaries without source code? Does Espressif have full rights to contribute these binaries to the Apache Foundation? Just because the code and binaries are licensed under Apache-2.0 doesn't mean it is compatible with the ASF. The main question is whether the Wi-Fi/BLE drivers are created entirely by Espressif, or use some third-party licensed code.
czw., 8 paź 2026 o 09:23 raiden00pl <[email protected]> napisał(a): > The ESP HAL includes binary blobs for BLE and Wi-Fi. What happens with > them? > If Espressif transfers rights to Apache, does that mean Apache becomes the > owner > of the binary blobs? Does this imply I can reverse-engineer these binary > blobs > without getting sued? Could I then incorporate the deconstructed code into > the HAL to eliminate the need for the binary blobs? Espressif surely has > agreements > in place with IP core providers for the radios - won't that cause any > issues? > > czw., 8 paź 2026 o 07:33 Alin Jerpelea <[email protected]> napisał(a): > >> Hi all, >> >> sorry for my late reply due to travel >> >> I think that we should handle the HALS case by case >> for Espressif I am happy to hear about this decision and I can only hope >> that they will continue expanding and improving the open source initiative >> >> I propose that we open a discuss thread for each hal including a link to >> the curent location so that we can discuss howto handle it >> >> in my opinion having hals under ASF and habing HALS on a separate place as >> suggested by Alan can only bring more posibility for collaboration >> >> @Alan C. de Assis <[email protected]> I think that we should discuss >> about >> inviting commiters to PMC (that discussion should be handled on a separate >> thread on a different channel) >> >> Best regards >> Alin >> >> On Thu, 8 Oct 2026, 04:09 Binh Nguyen, <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >> > Hi all, >> > >> > I'd like to share my perspective on this topic. >> > >> > First, I'd like to clarify that I have no objection to Espressif's >> > decision. If Espressif is comfortable donating ownership of their HAL >> and >> > moving it under ASF infrastructure, I fully respect that choice. >> > >> > Open-source communities are usually built around collaboration, >> > governance, and shared maintenance, not around forcing contributors to >> > transfer ownership of their code. >> > >> > If donating ownership becomes the expected model, we may solve the >> > Espressif case but unintentionally make it harder for other vendors to >> > participate in the future. I believe we should optimize for attracting >> > contributors, not increasing contribution barriers. >> > >> > Thanks, >> > Binh >> > >> > >> >
