Open Source Summit Korea 2026

Zephyr initially set out to solve a problem that many embedded teams quietly struggled with: how to build dependable real-time systems without being locked into a single vendor, toolchain, or proprietary stack. The project introduced a new model built around portability, adoption of open source and security best practices, modern tooling, and a shared ecosystem of drivers and middleware.

From the start, there was the commitment from the start apply known best practices to its development. While Zephyr is a different code base, a lot of the lessons learned from developing the Linux Kernel were applied. The project has also focused on incorporating security best practices from the start which now enables it to make compliance easier for manufacturers looking to conform to the emerging Cybersecurity Resilence Act (CRA).

Best practices have also enabled the project to work towards achieving formal safety certification for 61508 and 26262. The project has achieved 61508 concept approval at this point, as is working towards formal certification, using a combination of traditional V-Model analysis, and innovative techniques to keep up with the speed of open source development.