Recently, the pioneering spirit of innovation was palpable at the first-ever OpenHarmony Technical Forum held in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The event, themed “OpenHarmony Technology Innovation and Ecosystem Practice,” engaged attendees in rich discussions about the evolving landscape of operating systems. This gathering marked a significant moment for developers and technology enthusiasts eager to explore the latest advancements in OpenHarmony, an emerging open-source project.
Hosted by the Technical Steering Committee (TSC) of the OpenHarmony Community and co-organized with esteemed institutions like the Dresden Research Center and the Amsterdam Research Center, the event drew a vibrant crowd of nearly 100 enthusiastic developers who attended in person. Additionally, the livestream enabled over 21,000 viewers from around the world to participate. It was inspiring to witness such a diverse community of technical experts and scholars from Europe and China joining forces to collaborate on the future of technology.
Delivering the opening remarks was Haibo Chen, the Founding Chair of the OpenHarmony TSC, who also carries the distinguished titles of ACM Fellow and IEEE Fellow. In his keynote, he emphasized how software technology serves as a catalyst for global economic growth. Chen highlighted that operating systems for intelligent terminals lay the groundwork for digital and intelligent transformations. He shared a vision where the OpenHarmony TSC unites key players from various sectors—industry, academia, and research—to foster powerful collaborations. Chen’s presentation not only introduced OpenHarmony’s innovative architectural design and core capabilities but also provided exciting updates on its evolving technology ecosystem and growing industry adoption.
Juan Rico, Oniro Program Manager at the Eclipse Foundation, took the stage next, shedding light on a critical challenge that has plagued the smart devices market for over a decade—global interoperability. Rico pointed out the struggle stemming from the complexities of technology, fragmented manufacturing practices, and shifting regulations that left the industry without a reliable reference framework. However, with OpenHarmony emerging as a promising solution, he shared insights into how, through collaboration between the Eclipse Foundation and the OpenAtom Foundation, the Oniro OS—built atop OpenHarmony—is starting to make waves across Europe.
Following that, Jaroslaw Marek, the Chair of the Oniro Steering & Marketing Committees, provided invaluable insights during his talk about “Jumpstart Your Eclipse Oniro Journey.” He articulated the motivations driving the creation of Oniro, emphasizing the importance of avoiding technology silos and reducing development costs. Marek also showcased an array of development tools and resources that would be instrumental for developers and device manufacturers—everything from Eclipse Theia IDE to QEMU virtualization environments, making it clear that building applications in this eco-system could be more accessible than ever.
Yubin Xia, the Director of the OpenHarmony Technology Club at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, followed with a compelling discussion on data security for mobile devices. In today’s tech-savvy world where our devices amass a wealth of personal data, Xia highlighted the dual-edged sword of such convenience: the corresponding rise in data security and privacy challenges. By presenting innovative use cases involving Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) technologies, and updates on the open-source TEE OS, OpenTrustee, Xia underscored the necessity for robust security measures to protect user data on mobile devices.
The technical presentations continued with Kevin Boos, the Principal Software Architect at Futurewei, showcasing how developers can leverage pure-Rust app development in OpenHarmony. His demonstration of integrating the Makepad UI toolkit with Robius, a platform abstraction layer, excited attendees by demonstrating how applications can be developed without diving into platform-specific codes.
Magnus Morton from the Edinburgh Research Center introduced Cangjie, a programming language tailored for developing native OpenHarmony applications. His insights into the language’s features offered a glimpse into how it could simplify the app development process going forward.
As the event progressed, Hatem ElKharashy from The Qt Company shared advancements in vector graphics rendering, while Rakhi Sharma from Igalia discussed building a web rendering engine. The blend of technical expertise and innovation left everyone eager to explore what could be achieved with OpenHarmony.
Towards the end of the forum, Yang Liu, Vice President of HopeRun Software, illustrated his company’s transition from a technology-driven to a business-driven approach within the OpenHarmony ecosystem. Liu’s insights pointed to applications beyond conventional tech fields, showing how different sectors such as industry, education, and energy could benefit from this collaborative movement.
The event concluded with a panel discussion moderated by Yutao Liu, featuring prominent figures from various sectors who skillfully debated the value propositions of OpenHarmony in international markets. This diverse dialogue stressed the significance of cultivating local developer communities and the need for a concerted effort towards integrated innovation.
Reflecting on this groundbreaking forum, one couldn’t help but feel a sense of optimism for the future of OpenHarmony. The momentum built here sets the stage for continued collaboration, knowledge sharing, and technological advancements that promise to unify the vast landscape of open-source technology. As this community continues to grow, it’s clear that the potential for innovation is limitless, and with sustained efforts, the journey towards a robust global open-source ecosystem is well underway.
