About
Who we are
The OpenSight™ Foundation is being established as a not-for-profit initiative. Its public-facing brand is simply OpenSight. The Foundation exists to build, steward and share an open observation layer for the physical world, beginning with roads and public infrastructure, so that authorities, contractors, researchers, technology companies and communities can see, share, enhance and create from a common base rather than each building the same technology independently.
Inspectors drive the road network constantly but leave no lasting digital record; comprehensive condition surveys are excellent but expensive and infrequent. Nobody holds the regular, ongoing digital picture of the road. OpenSight fills that gap by turning routine drives into a continuous observation record: an inexpensive open appliance captures georeferenced imagery on every drive, works offline, publishes openly, and feeds an open observation database where computer vision and human review turn images into evidence of assets, defects and change over time. Everything core, including the hardware designs, the software, the Observation Schema and the APIs, will be published openly, so authorities, contractors, universities, technology companies and communities can see, share, enhance and create together.
Mission
Create the common, open infrastructure for capturing, sharing, enhancing and understanding the physical world.
Vision
A continuously observed physical world: an open, affordable, interoperable observation layer that anyone can contribute to, build on and benefit from, without vendor lock-in.
Brand personality
We are / we are not
| We are | We are not |
|---|---|
| Clean, modern, approachable, trusted, open. | Corporate, flashy, exclusive, opaque. |
| Practical and grounded: real vehicles, real roads, real engineering. | Speculative or hype-driven "AI startup" language. |
| Collaborative and public-interest minded. | Proprietary, gatekeeping or vendor-locked. |
| Precise and evidence-led. | Vague, over-promising or unverifiable. |
Legal status
Where we stand legally
The intended entity is The OpenSight Foundation Ltd, an Australian public company limited by guarantee. Incorporation is pending. It has not yet been lodged.
To incorporate we need three directors and a company secretary. We have people in mind and we are open to others putting themselves forward: see Get involved.
OpenSight is a working identity, used ahead of trademark clearance. "Foundation" in the name does not itself confer charity status: until ACNC registration is granted, OpenSight is not a registered charity, and no tax-deductible donations are sought or accepted.
Why this exists
Read the story behind OpenSight, how it started, what it's for, and where it's going, in the founder's own words.