Deloitte Launches Open Source Compass, Providing Visualizations of Open Source Software Trends and Insights

Open source software has reached an inflection point and is now helping shape digital strategies across the entire enterprise

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Deloitte

Sep 19, 2019, 09:05 ET

NEW YORK, Sept. 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Deloitte announced the launch of a first-of-its-kind public data visualization tool, Open Source Compass (OSC) intended to help C-suite leaders, product managers and software engineers understand the trajectory of open source development and emerging technologies. The information curated and shared through the new data visualization tool provides insights to inform key business decisions. OSC evaluates code commits and developer mindshare to better understand technology trends, guides exploration into relevant platforms and languages, and enables visibility into the developer talent landscape. Designed and developed by Deloitte, Datawheel, and Artificial and Natural Intelligence Toulouse Institute (ANITI) Chair Cesar Hidalgo, OSC analyzes data from the largest open source development platform which brings together over 36 million developers from around the world. OSC visualizes the scale and reach of emerging technology domains — over 100 million repositories/projects — in areas including blockchain, machine learning, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

Open source software continues to gain traction in the enterprise as a powerful accelerator for digital transformation, value creation and talent strategy; a complement to increasingly strategic cloud providers, enterprise technology partners, and plans to modernize their legacy core technology stack. Open source also continues to deliver an invaluable foundation to startups with more limited resources. Some of the key benefits of Deloitte's new open source analysis tool include:

Exploring which specific open source projects are growing or stagnating in domains like machine learning.
Identifying potential platforms for prototyping, experimentation, and scaled innovation.
Scouting for tech talent in specific technology domains and locations.
Detecting and assessing technology risks.
Understanding what programming languages are gaining or losing ground to inform training and recruitment.

"Open source software has been around since the early days of the internet and has incited a completely new kind of collaboration and productivity — especially in the realm of emerging technology," said Bill Briggs, chief technology officer, Deloitte Consulting LLP. "Deloitte's Open Source Compass can help provide insights that allow organizations to be more deliberate in their approach to innovation, while connecting to a pool of bourgeoning talent."

Open Source Compass will provide insights into 15 emergent technology domains, including cyber security, virtual/augmented reality, serverless computing and machine learning, to name a few. The site will offer a view into systemic trends on how the domains are evolving. The open source platform will also explore geographic trends based on project development, authors and knowledge sharing across cities and countries. It will also track how certain programming languages are being used and how fast they are growing. Free and open to the public, the site enables users to query technology domains of interest, run their own comparisons, and share or download data.

Datawheel, an award-winning company specialized in the creation of data visualization solutions, designed and developed the platform. "Making sense of large streams of data is one of the most pressing challenges of our day," said Hidalgo. "In Open Source Compass, we used our latest technologies to create a platform that turns opaque and difficult to understand streams of data into simple and easy to understand visualizations."

"Open Source Compass can address different organizational needs for different types of users based on their priorities," said Ragu Gurumurthy, global chief innovation officer for Deloitte Consulting LLP. "A CTO could explore the latest project developments in machine learning to help drive experimentation, while a learning and development leader can find the most popular programming language for robotics that could then be taught as a new skill in an internal course offering."

For more information on Open Source Compass, please visit: Open Source Compass.

About Deloitte
Deloitte provides industry-leading audit, consulting, tax and advisory services to many of the world's most admired brands, including nearly 90% of the Fortune 500® and more than 5,000 private and middle market companies. Our people work across the industry sectors that drive and shape today's marketplace — delivering measurable and lasting results that help reinforce public trust in our capital markets, inspire clients to see challenges as opportunities to transform and thrive, and help lead the way toward a stronger economy and a healthy society. Deloitte is proud to be part of the largest global professional services network serving our clients in the markets that are most important to them. Our network of member firms in more than 150 countries and territories serves four out of five Fortune Global 500® companies. Learn how Deloitte's approximately 286,000 people make an impact that matters at www.deloitte.com.

About Datawheel

Datawheel is an award-winning software company specialized in the development of rich end-to-end digital transformation solutions that integrate, distribute, and visualize multiple streams of data.

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SOURCE Deloitte