Destination Linux 447: Linux Hits 5%! 2025 Year in Review & 2026 Bold Predictions (ft. Máirín Duffy)
Dec 23, 2025
Máirín Duffy (Mo), an open source engineer and Red Hat contributor, talks about student-led Linux refurb projects and enterprise AI tools. She covers the surge past 5% desktop share, gaming and SteamOS momentum, Wayland’s progress, Red Hat Lightspeed and MCP, and bold 2026 predictions like RISC-V growth and desktop shakeups.
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How A High School Student Launched Uptech Project
- Máirín told the Uptech Project origin: a high school student Adi refurbished donated laptops with Linux to help peers who couldn't get scholarship laptops.
- The project began when only 2 of 20 deserving students received laptops, so Adi launched a donation and refurbishing effort.
Donate Old Laptops Or Start A Local Chapter
- Donate gently used 2017+ laptops locally or start a high school chapter to refurbish machines with Linux.
- Máirín pointed listeners to uptechproject.org and encouraged partnering with motivated students to expand chapters.
Ship Desktop AI Opt In And Off By Default
- Make AI opt‑in and off by default on user desktops to preserve trust and data sovereignty.
- Máirín recommended measured, local-first integration so organizations can avoid cross‑border data processing issues.