TL;DR
Meta is contributing React, React Native and JSX to a new React Foundation hosted by the Linux Foundation. The foundation will include seven corporate members and aims to create independent technical governance to address concerns about vendor dominance in the React ecosystem.
What happened
Meta announced it will contribute React, React Native and JSX to a new React Foundation that will sit within the Linux Foundation. The foundation will initially count seven corporate members: Amazon, Callstack, Expo, Meta, Microsoft, Software Mansion and Vercel. Its stated responsibilities include maintaining React’s infrastructure and trademarks, organizing React Conf and providing sponsorship for the wider React ecosystem. Seth Webster, Meta’s head of React, will be the foundation’s first executive director. Alongside the foundation, Meta and collaborators plan to establish a separate technical governance structure intended to be independent of the foundation itself, with the goal of preventing any single company from being overrepresented. The move responds to long-running concerns in the community about vendor influence, particularly around Next.js and its close association with Vercel, and follows broader debate over React’s growing complexity and server-side features.
Why it matters
- Shifting stewardship to a neutral foundation could reduce perceived vendor control and increase community trust.
- Formal governance and trademark stewardship may shape how contributions, releases and ecosystem events are managed.
- Changes could affect competing framework and hosting vendors that argue current ecosystems favor particular companies.
- An independent technical committee may influence React’s technical direction, priorities and interoperability with other tools.
Key facts
- Meta will contribute React, React Native and JSX to a new React Foundation hosted by the Linux Foundation.
- Seven founding corporate members: Amazon, Callstack, Expo, Meta, Microsoft, Software Mansion and Vercel.
- The foundation’s remit includes maintaining React’s infrastructure and trademarks, organizing React Conf and sponsoring the React ecosystem.
- Seth Webster, Meta’s head of React, is named as the foundation’s first executive director.
- React was created by Facebook (now Meta) in 2013 and is reported to be used by over 80% of respondents in the most recent State of JavaScript survey.
- The React Core team currently has 21 members: 14 from Meta, five from Vercel and two independents.
- Some developers have voiced concerns about vendor involvement, especially around Next.js and Vercel’s role in the ecosystem.
- Netlify has criticized Next.js for lacking an adapter mechanism and using a private build format, according to the source.
- There is also community concern about React’s increasing complexity, particularly around server-side features.
What to watch next
- How the independent technical governance will be structured and who will sit on it — not confirmed in the source.
- Whether the foundation’s creation leads to concrete changes in React Core team membership or decision-making processes — not confirmed in the source.
- Whether Next.js documentation or build practices change in response to complaints about platform lock-in — not confirmed in the source.
Quick glossary
- React: A JavaScript library for building user interfaces, originally developed by Facebook (now Meta) and widely used for web front ends.
- React Native: A framework based on React for building cross-platform mobile applications using JavaScript and native components.
- JSX: A syntax extension for JavaScript that looks similar to XML or HTML and is commonly used with React to describe UI structure.
- Linux Foundation: A nonprofit organization that hosts and supports open source projects and foundations, providing neutral governance and infrastructure.
- Technical governance: The structures and processes that determine how technical decisions, contributions and roadmaps are managed for a project.
Reader FAQ
What is Meta contributing to the foundation?
Meta is contributing React, React Native and JSX to the new React Foundation.
Who are the founding members of the React Foundation?
The initial corporate members named are Amazon, Callstack, Expo, Meta, Microsoft, Software Mansion and Vercel.
Will Meta still control React after the move?
The source says a separate independent technical governance structure is planned, but whether Meta will retain control is not confirmed in the source.
When will the transition be completed?
not confirmed in the source
Will React’s license or trademark policy change?
not confirmed in the source
DEVOPS 5 Meta will move React to Linux Foundation to address vendor dominance fears Independent technical governance will hope to unite fractured ecosystem Tim Anderson Thu 9 Oct 2025 // 15:05 UTC Meta will…
Sources
- Meta will move React to Linux Foundation to address vendor dominance fears
- Introducing the React Foundation – Engineering at Meta
- Linux Foundation Announces Intent to Launch the React …
- Meta transfers React to Linux Foundation
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