After more than 34 years, the Linux kernel community has outlined a preliminary contingency plan to replace creator Linus Torvalds as its maintainer. The initiative, described as a 'plan for a plan,' follows discussions at the 2025 Maintainers Summit amid concerns over an aging core group of contributors. It aims to ensure smooth transitions for the project's leadership.
The Linux kernel, initiated by Finnish engineer Linus Torvalds in September 1991, has relied on him to oversee the final integration of changes into its main repository, torvalds/linux.git, which he owns. With over 100 maintainers contributing to their own repositories, the centralized pull-request process remains Torvalds' responsibility, though substitutes have occasionally stepped in.
A notable example occurred with the Linux 4.19 release, managed by Greg Kroah-Hartman while Torvalds took a brief hiatus following an admission of 'unprofessional' behavior in an apology. This incident underscored the vulnerabilities in the current structure.
Authored by contributor Dan Williams, the new 'project continuity' announcement serves as an early framework for succession. It states: 'Should the maintainers of that [Linux kernel] repository become unwilling or unable to do that work going forward (including facilitating a transition), the project will need to find one or more replacements without delay.'
The plan proposes discussions, either online or in-person, chaired by an organizer, to evaluate options for managing the top-level repository and prioritize the project's long-term health. Next steps are set to be determined within the next two weeks.
Torvalds has previously noted that the core community 'doing the real work' is 'getting gray and old,' though he emphasized the influx of new contributors, with veterans shifting to maintenance and management roles. This development emerges from the 2025 Maintainers Summit, addressing the need for formal processes after decades without them.
