PLIP: Statement on Plone AI Strategy

[pilz]

Note

once on plone.org, add label: '03 type: feature (plip)'

Preamble

This PLIP is about adding a content page on AI to plone.org. The previous process has caused disruption because it carried out the discussion, in absence of a testing space, on plone.org - adding the endorsement of the location as a disturbing factor.

It follows https://6.docs.plone.org/contributing/core/plips.html.

The goal is to facilitate a public discussion and decision making process - not only for development proposals but also for content, messaging and marketing - in an open and transparent but also structured and formal way without causing disruption.

So in a way, this PLIP also explores how this process can be used for non-development proposals, making contribution paths and decision processes also for these visible and accessible.

This helps in the following ways:

• It reduces emotional resistance - People know they are reviewing a proposal
• Gives critics a constructive role - improve instead of block
• Encourages experimentation - ideas can exist without pressure
• Protects plone.org - the official messaging remains stable
• It documents the decision making process - The process can be read up at a later time, reducing rumors.

We find these rules especially useful for development topics. For content, messaging and marketing, we see the need for additional rules to keep the process constructive and clear for everyone.

Therefore we will handle the discussion on this under the following additional preconditions:

• Only comments that provide an alternative option are considered
• The Responsible team can decide or delegate or involve another team or board on decision making
• The Proposer commits to handling constructive comments by explaining the reasons and decides to include changes or not based on an explanation.
• All involved commit to the proposed times or suggest other timelines they can commit to.
• If disagreements in the comments cannot be resolved, Proposer and Responsible Team may decide to retract the PLIP.

Summary

Status

draft → discussion → proposed → accepted or rejected → archived

Durations expected per status:

• draft: 1 week
• discussion: 3 weeks
• proposed: 1 week

Responsible Persons/Teams

• Proposer: Alexander Pilz

• Seconder: Jörg Zell, Stefano Marchetti, Guido Stevens

• Designated Team (Decisionmaker):

  • Marketing Team (Astrid)
  • if Marketing Team does not or can not take the decision alone, add Steering Board or Foundation Board

Publication Channels

This PLIP will be announced on community.plone.org

Abstract

In 2026 Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transforming how organizations create, manage, and interact with digital content. As a long-standing platform for secure and mission-critical publishing, Plone must provide clear guidance on how AI technologies can be integrated responsibly into its ecosystem. Publishing a public AI strategy page on plone.org serves this purpose: it explains the community’s approach to AI in a transparent, balanced, and governance-driven way.

The proposed page does not mandate the use of AI in Plone. Instead, it clarifies how AI can be adopted while preserving the core values that define the project: openness, security, privacy, and community governance. It explains that AI capabilities in Plone are optional, implemented primarily through add-ons, and subject to the same rigorous community review processes that govern other changes to the platform.

The page also acknowledges legitimate concerns surrounding AI, including ethical implications, environmental impact, bias in training data, security risks such as prompt injection, and the broader political consequences of centralized AI infrastructures. By openly addressing these issues, the community demonstrates that Plone’s approach to AI is not driven by hype or vendor pressure, but by careful evaluation and responsible governance.

A central theme of the statement is digital autonomy: organizations using Plone should retain full control over their data, infrastructure, and AI choices. The architecture described in the proposal—such as integrating AI through standardized interfaces like the Model Context Protocol (MCP)—positions Plone as a permission-aware “source of truth” for AI-assisted workflows while allowing deployments to remain self-hosted or independent of specific providers.

Publishing this page on plone.org therefore serves several community goals:

• Clarifying Plone’s position on AI in a transparent way
• Providing guidance to organizations evaluating AI adoption
• Demonstrating that Plone’s governance model can address emerging technologies responsibly
• Ensuring that innovation around AI happens in the open and under community review

By articulating these principles publicly, the Plone community signals that it is both technically forward-looking and ethically grounded, offering an alternative to opaque, centralized AI platforms while preserving the freedom of users to adopt — or reject — AI according to their own values.

Motivation

Artificial Intelligence has become a central topic for organizations evaluating their digital infrastructure. Many Plone users and potential adopters are currently asking how AI fits into the platform, whether it is supported, and how it aligns with Plone’s values around security, openness, and governance.

At the same time, AI raises legitimate concerns within the community, including ethical implications, environmental impact, bias in training data, security risks, and the growing concentration of power in large technology providers. These concerns deserve transparent acknowledgement rather than silence or implicit decisions.

Publishing a clear AI strategy page on plone.org provides a shared reference point that explains how the Plone community approaches AI: cautiously, transparently, and in alignment with its long-standing principles of open source governance, data sovereignty, and user choice. The page helps external audiences understand Plone’s position while giving the community a starting point to discuss AI-related developments constructively.
(This starting point is not to be confused with the AI policy proposal in PLIP XX)

The goal of this proposal is therefore not to promote AI adoption, but to articulate how AI can be explored responsibly within the Plone ecosystem while preserving the freedom of users to adopt—or reject—it according to their own needs and values.

Assumptions

1. AI will influence content management workflows
   Artificial Intelligence is increasingly integrated into editorial, search, and knowledge workflows. Organizations evaluating CMS platforms expect guidance on how AI can interact with their content systems.

2. Plone users require strong governance and security guarantees
   Many Plone deployments operate in regulated environments such as government, universities, and large enterprises. Any AI integration must therefore respect strict requirements for security, compliance, and auditability.

3. The Plone community values autonomy and transparency
   Plone has historically prioritized open-source transparency, vendor neutrality, and user control over infrastructure and data. Any AI-related communication must reflect these values.

4. AI adoption within Plone will remain optional
   Not all organizations want to adopt AI technologies. Plone must continue to support deployments that intentionally avoid AI while allowing experimentation through optional components.

5. Community governance is the mechanism for platform evolution
   Changes that affect the platform or its direction must remain subject to the established community processes (e.g., PLIPs for core changes). No single vendor or contributor defines the roadmap.

6. The ecosystem benefits from a clear public position
   Without an explicit explanation of how Plone approaches AI, external audiences may assume either that Plone is not addressing AI at all or that it is adopting it without safeguards. A public statement reduces ambiguity.

7. Discussion of emerging technologies should happen openly
   Open communities function best when controversial or complex topics are addressed transparently. Publishing a statement creates a shared reference point for constructive discussion rather than fragmented debates.

Proposal & Implementation

Page content

The proposal for the page on "Plone AI Strategy" is private and can be found on https://plone.org/why-plone/plone-ai.

For participants without sufficient rights does the attached PDF show the state of the proposal as of 2026-03-10.
Plone AI Strategy.pdf

Position in Site

The currently proposed position in plone.org is https://plone.org/why-plone/plone-ai.

There is known discussion ongoing about a better place.

Deliverables

A page with design elements on plone.org.

Risks

• The statements made on the page may be perceived as promises that we cannot deliver on and we might loose credibility as a consequence.
• The place in the site may be not optimal and a different section might have to be created where the page can live in - which may cost additional effort.

Participants

• Jörg Zell - Initiator
• Guido Stevens - gyst - Contributor
• Alex Pilz - pilz - 1st round Reviewer, PLIP Proposer
• Stefano Marchetti - stemrc - 1st round Reviewer
• Timo Stollenwerk - tisto - 2st round Reviewer

Decisions (that need to be made)

• Approve the path under which the page will be accessible (currently why-plone/plone-ai)
• Approve the current content
• Assign Marketing as the responsible team for future updates