feat(blog): final pycon us post gen ai tools

_includes/blog-card.html

@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@ <h3 class="blog-card__title">{{ card_title }}</h3>
       </p>
 
       {% if card_size == "featured" and include.post.excerpt %}
-        <p class="blog-card__excerpt">{{ include.post.excerpt | strip_html | truncate: 220 }}</p>
+        <p class="blog-card__excerpt">{{ include.post.excerpt | strip_html }}</p>
       {% endif %}
     </div>
   </a>

_includes/pyos-blockquote.html

@@ -3,10 +3,11 @@
 >
   <p class="quote">{{ include.quote }}</p>
   {% if include.author or include.event %}
-  <footer>
-    {% if include.author %}<strong>~{{ include.author }}{% endif %}</strong>{%
-    if include.event %}, <em>{{ include.event }}</em>{% endif %}
+  <footer class="highlight-quote__cite">
+    <cite>
+      {%- if include.author -%}{{ include.author }}{%- endif -%}
+      {%- if include.author and include.event -%}, {{ include.event }}{%- elsif include.event -%}{{ include.event }}{%- endif -%}
+    </cite>
   </footer>
-  <div class="end"></div>
   {% endif %}
 </blockquote>

_layouts/single.html

@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@
           <aside class="sidebar__right {% if page.toc_sticky %}sticky{% endif %}">
             <nav class="toc">
               <header><h4 class="nav__title"><i class="fas fa-{{ page.toc_icon | default: 'file-alt' }}"></i> {{ page.toc_label | default: site.data.ui-text[site.locale].toc_label | default: "On this page" }}</h4></header>
-              {% include toc.html sanitize=true html=content h_min=1 h_max=6 class="toc__menu" skip_no_ids=true %}
+              {% include toc.html sanitize=true html=content h_min=2 h_max=2 class="toc__menu" skip_no_ids=true %}
             </nav>
           </aside>
         {% endif %}

_pages/blog.md

@@ -5,8 +5,6 @@ classes: wide
 title: "pyOpenSci Blog"
 excerpt: "Updates from across pyOpenSci — accepted packages, peer review, training, and the community behind the code."
 header:
-    overlay_color: "#666"
-    overlay_filter: 0.6
-    overlay_image: images/headers/pyopensci-learn-header.png
+  overlay_image: images/blog/headers/pycon-us-2026-header.png
 author_profile: false
 ---

_posts/2026-05-21-pycon-us-2026-community-connection.md

@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ Even in a hard year — especially in a hard year — I left the conference feel
 
 **Part 3: [The sprints](/blog/pycon-us-2026-sprints.html)** — From one person in Salt Lake City to a room full of contributors working together. Growth, learning, and community in action.
 
-**Part 4: Generative AI and open source** — GenAI was everywhere at PyCon this year. Not as hype, but as a real challenge the community is wrestling with. Between our open space, the Maintainer Summit BoF, and Amanda Casari's powerful closing keynote, a theme emerged: the path forward is human.
+**Part 4: [Generative AI and open source](/blog/pycon-us-2026-generative-ai-open-source.html)** — GenAI was everywhere at PyCon this year. Not as hype, but as a real challenge the community is wrestling with. Between our open space, the Maintainer Summit BoF, and Amanda Casari's powerful closing keynote, a theme emerged: the path forward is human.
 
 ## What it all comes down to
 
@@ -73,4 +73,4 @@ If there's one thing that tied all of these experiences together, it's this: **t
 
 ---
 
-*This is Part 1 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2026. [Part 2: Maintainer Summit](/blog/pycon-us-2026-maintainers-summit.html) · [Part 3: pyOpenSci sprints](/blog/pycon-us-2026-sprints.html) · Part 4: generative AI and open source (coming soon).*
+*This is Part 1 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2026. [Part 2: Maintainer Summit](/blog/pycon-us-2026-maintainers-summit.html) · [Part 3: pyOpenSci sprints](/blog/pycon-us-2026-sprints.html) · [Part 4: generative AI and open source](/blog/pycon-us-2026-generative-ai-open-source.html).*

_posts/2026-05-29-pycon-us-2026-maintainers-summit.md

@@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ But there's also genuine hope. The majority of people in the room are already us
 
 
 
-I have a lot more to say about AI tools and generative AI in open source in Part 4 of this series.
+I have a lot more to say about AI tools and generative AI in open source in [Part 4 of this series](/blog/pycon-us-2026-generative-ai-open-source.html).
 
 ## Wrap up
 
@@ -132,4 +132,4 @@ See you in there.
 
 ---
 
-*This is Part 2 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2026. [Part 1](/blog/pycon-us-2026-community-connection.html): community and connection · [Part 3: pyOpenSci sprints](/blog/pycon-us-2026-sprints.html) · Part 4: generative AI and open source (coming soon).*
+*This is Part 2 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2026. [Part 1](/blog/pycon-us-2026-community-connection.html): community and connection · [Part 3: pyOpenSci sprints](/blog/pycon-us-2026-sprints.html) · [Part 4: generative AI and open source](/blog/pycon-us-2026-generative-ai-open-source.html).*

_posts/2026-06-02-pycon-us-2026-sprints.md

@@ -23,6 +23,13 @@ last_modified: 2026-05-29
 
 This year marked our fourth sprint at [PyCon US](https://us.pycon.org/2026/). If you want to really understand what pyOpenSci is about, our sprints are the place to look.
 
+<figure>
+  <picture>
+    <source srcset="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-sprints-keynote-slide.webp" type="image/webp">
+    <img src="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-sprints-keynote-slide.png" alt="The PyCon US 2026 sprints slide projected on the main keynote screen, listing Monday and Tuesday sprint projects including Django, Mailman, ScanAPI, Memray, PyStack, Djangonaut Space, BeeWare, and more.">
+  </picture>
+  <figcaption>Sprints at PyCon US 2026 — dozens of open source projects welcoming contributors on Monday and Tuesday.</figcaption>
+</figure>
 
 When we held our very first sprint at PyCon US 2023 in Salt Lake City, it was my first time running a formal sprint. I missed the introductions to the sprints and pyOpenSci was not well known in the broader Python community--yet. One person showed up. [Read more about that first PyCon experience](/blog/pycon-2023-packaging-presentation-sprints-leah-wasser.html). This year, ~20 people showed up throughout the day. That arc — from a single contributor to a buzzing room of people at round tables — tells you everything about our community.
 
@@ -93,4 +100,4 @@ If you've been thinking about sprinting with us for the first time: come. We'll
 
 ---
 
-*This is Part 3 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2026. [Part 1](/blog/pycon-us-2026-community-connection.html): community and connection · [Part 2: Maintainer Summit](/blog/pycon-us-2026-maintainers-summit.html) · Part 4: generative AI and open source (coming soon).*
+*This is Part 3 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2026. [Part 1](/blog/pycon-us-2026-community-connection.html): community and connection · [Part 2: Maintainer Summit](/blog/pycon-us-2026-maintainers-summit.html) · [Part 4: generative AI and open source](/blog/pycon-us-2026-generative-ai-open-source.html).*

_posts/2026-06-08-pycon-us-2026-generative-ai-open-source.md

@@ -0,0 +1,211 @@
+---
+layout: single
+title: "Generative AI and open source: what PyCon US 2026 taught us about the path forward"
+excerpt: "Generative AI was a dominant theme at PyCon US 2026 — not as a buzzword, but as a lived reality the Python community is actively wrestling with. From our pyOpenSci open space to the Maintainers Summit BoF to Amanda Casari's powerful closing keynote, the path forward remains human."
+author: "Leah Wasser"
+permalink: /blog/pycon-us-2026-generative-ai-open-source.html
+blog_image: images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-amanda-casari-keynote.png
+blog_image_alt: "Amanda Casari delivers the closing keynote at PyCon US 2026 beside a slide that reads Disposable Code Is Here to Stay, but Durable Code Is What Runs the World, attributed to Charity Majors."
+blog_topic: community
+header:
+  overlay_image: images/blog/headers/pycon-us-2026-header.png
+categories:
+  - blog-post
+  - community
+classes: wide
+toc: true
+comments: true
+last_modified: 2026-06-05
+---
+
+*This post is Part 4 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at [PyCon US 2026](https://us.pycon.org/2026/). [Part 1](/blog/pycon-us-2026-community-connection.html) covers community and connection. [Part 2](/blog/pycon-us-2026-maintainers-summit.html) covers the Maintainer Summit. [Part 3](/blog/pycon-us-2026-sprints.html) covers the sprints.*
+
+*******
+
+## Generative AI and open source: what the community is wrestling with
+
+Generative AI was a dominant theme at PyCon US 2026 — prominent enough
+to have its own dedicated conference track for the first time. But for
+pyOpenSci, the conversation wasn't about machine learning applications
+or what AI can build. It was about something more immediate: **what
+generative AI tools are doing to open source communities themselves.**
+
+How are they changing who contributes? Who reviews? Who stays? What
+does it mean for the humans who maintain these projects — often
+voluntarily, often at the edges of burnout — when the barrier to
+submitting code drops to near zero while the cost of reviewing it keeps
+climbing?
+
+*At pyOpenSci, these questions have been front of mind for a few years — shaping our [peer review policy for AI-assisted submissions](https://www.pyopensci.org/software-peer-review/our-process/policies.html#policy-for-use-of-generative-ai-llms) and our course [Ship It: Python Packaging in the Generative AI Era](/blog/ship-it-cohort-one.html). PyCon US 2026 gave us a chance to bring that work into the broader conversation.*
+
+## Where we heard it: AI conversations across PyCon US 2026
+
+AI conversations showed up everywhere — hallways, structured open spaces, and the keynote stage.
+
+**On day one, pyOpenSci hosted an open space** around a simple but hard question: *What can we do together to ease some of the pain points around generative AI in open source?* Small groups formed around specific tensions and came back with themes that will feel familiar to anyone in this space.
+
+<figure>
+  <picture>
+    <source srcset="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-genai-open-space.webp" type="image/webp">
+    <img src="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-genai-open-space.png" alt="Attendees gather around a round table during the pyOpenSci generative AI open space at PyCon US 2026, laptops open as one participant gestures while leading a small-group discussion.">
+  </picture>
+  <figcaption>Small-group discussion at the pyOpenSci generative AI open space on day one of PyCon US 2026.</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+**At the Maintainers Summit on Saturday,** pyOpenSci co-hosted a Generative AI BoF with [Jackie Kazil](https://github.com/jackiekazil), giving us a rare snapshot of how maintainers are actually using and feeling about these tools. Taken together, these conversations painted a remarkably consistent picture.
+
+## What the community shared
+
+Nearly two thirds of our event participants maintain projects with four or fewer
+active co-maintainers. Over 80% are using generative AI tools — across
+chat, IDEs, and the command line — for everything from generating code to
+rubber ducking through problems. Most find them useful, but few called them
+*very* useful. That pragmatism, and the frustrations underneath it, shaped
+everything that follows. **Most people that we talk to use AI tools regularly.**
+
+<figure>
+  <picture>
+    <source srcset="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-genai-community-discussion.webp" type="image/webp">
+    <img src="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-genai-community-discussion.png" alt="Attendees sit together around a round table at PyCon US 2026, leaning in during a focused small-group conversation about generative AI and open source.">
+  </picture>
+  <figcaption>Maintainers and contributors working through generative AI questions together at PyCon US 2026.</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+## What we keep hearing: themes across the community
+
+These aren't new concerns — but PyCon US 2026 made clear they are intensifying.
+One pattern worth naming upfront: usage is high across the board. Course participants
+tend to be excited — energized by what the tools make possible. Maintainers are more
+measured. They're using the same tools, but they're sitting on the other side of the
+pull request. That difference in vantage point shapes everything that follows.
+
+### The maintainer burden is growing
+
+The barrier to submitting an open source contribution has dropped dramatically. The
+barrier to reviewing one has not. More PRs, more issues, more noise — but the same
+number of hours in the day. AI-generated code can look right while being wrong in ways
+that take real expertise to catch:
+
+{% include pyos-blockquote.html quote="It's like a genius who's also a toddler — which is hard to explain to the people who want us to rely on it completely." author="PyCon US 2026 Maintainers Summit BoF attendee" class="highlight" %}
+
+Even course participants — people actively learning and enthusiastic about these tools
+— are already noticing the gap:
+
+{% include pyos-blockquote.html quote="They are helpful and increase efficiency, but they make it harder to fully understand the code." author="Ship It: Python Packaging in the Generative AI Era participant" class="highlight" %}
+
+The review burden isn't just a workload problem. It's a trust problem. Reviewers used
+to assume a pull request came from someone who wanted to learn and contribute. That
+assumption no longer holds. Projects are asking hard questions about how to verify
+human intent, but no consensus approach has emerged.
+
+### The contributor pipeline is at risk
+
+Open source has always had an informal mentorship model — small issues, feedback,
+mistakes, gradual responsibility. That slow, messy process is how contributors become
+maintainers. AI tools are short-circuiting that ramp. When a new contributor can
+generate a plausible-looking pull request without deeply engaging with the codebase,
+they skip the hard learning that builds judgment and intuition:
+
+{% include pyos-blockquote.html quote="It's made growing long-term contributors very hard." author="PyCon US 2026 Maintainers Summit BoF attendee" class="highlight" %}
+
+Our course participants are sensing this from the other side:
+
+{% include pyos-blockquote.html quote="Very helpful for prototyping and learning, but not for scaling production — still need a senior software engineer to make good judgement." author="Ship It: Python Packaging in the Generative AI Era participant" class="highlight" %}
+
+{% include pyos-blockquote.html quote="[AI tools are] Somewhere in between — they can be super helpful but I think they can fool people into thinking they don't need to understand the fundamentals." author="Ship It: Python Packaging in the Generative AI Era participant" class="highlight" %}
+
+There's a paradox here: the people who most need AI tools to bridge skill gaps are
+often the least equipped to critically evaluate their outputs. That requires deep
+knowledge of the codebase — exactly what newer contributors are still building.
+
+### AI policy shapes community culture
+
+Projects are taking wildly different stances — outright bans, permissive approaches,
+everything in between. But policies aren't just legal governance. The policy you
+create is a signal about what kind of community you're building.
+
+The [pip-tools policy discussion](https://github.com/jazzband/pip-tools/discussions/2278)
+offered one of the clearest framings we heard all week: **"Don't let AI speak for you."**
+A ban selects for contributors who want to engage deeply with the craft of developing software. A permissive
+policy may attract volume but sacrifice quality code. Neither choice is inherently right or wrong — but the
+choice determines the type of community that forms around your project. Every project is making that choice, whether
+explicitly or not.
+
+### The power asymmetry no one is talking about
+
+Companies are requiring engineers to use these tools, setting up token consumption
+leaderboards, tying job security to AI output volume. Meanwhile the individual
+maintainer — often unpaid, often solo — absorbs the downstream costs: more
+AI-generated PRs to review, more hallucinated issues to triage, no budget for tooling
+to help manage it.
+
+{% include pyos-blockquote.html quote="Cost / access asymmetry between megacorporations with infinite token budgets and individuals without them." author="PyCon US 2026 Maintainers Summit BoF attendee" class="highlight" %}
+
+This asymmetry isn't just economic. It's a power dynamic reshaping who open source works for.
+
+### The ethics and sustainability conversation has gone quiet
+
+A few years ago, conversations about AI in open source were full of harder questions —
+copyright, consent, environmental cost. Legal and licensing questions remain genuinely
+unresolved: what is the copyright status of AI-generated code? How do licenses and attribution
+interact with AI-assisted contributions?
+
+{% include pyos-blockquote.html quote="Copyright violations — something we were all talking about before, but not much any longer..." author="PyCon US 2026 Maintainers Summit BoF attendee" class="highlight" %}
+
+Those conversations haven't been resolved. They've just been crowded out by urgency
+and pragmatism. The fact that we stopped having them doesn't mean the questions
+were answered.
+
+## The human thread: Amanda Casari's keynote: a note on hope
+
+All of these conversations — the frustrations, the policy debates, the
+pipeline worries — could easily leave you feeling like the ground is
+shifting in ways that are hard to stand on. And for a lot of
+maintainers, it is.
+
+But PyCon US 2026 didn't end on that note.
+
+The conference closed with one of the most moving keynote addresses
+I've witnessed — Amanda Casari speaking about resilience, hope, and
+what it means to be human in an era of rapid technological change.
+
+The message wasn't naive optimism. It was a recognition that yes, this
+is hard, and yes, people are burnt out — and also that the path forward
+is a human one. Connection, care, and community are not features that
+any AI tool can replicate. They are the thing.
+
+<figure>
+  <picture>
+    <source srcset="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-amanda-casari-keynote.webp" type="image/webp">
+    <img src="{{ site.baseurl }}/images/blog/2026/pycon-us-2026-amanda-casari-keynote.png" alt="Amanda Casari delivers the closing keynote at PyCon US 2026 beside a slide that reads Disposable Code Is Here to Stay, but Durable Code Is What Runs the World, attributed to Charity Majors.">
+  </picture>
+  <figcaption>Amanda Casari's closing keynote at PyCon US 2026, citing Charity Majors: "Disposable code is here to stay, but durable code is what runs the world."</figcaption>
+</figure>
+
+That framing landed differently after a week of conversations about
+reviewer burden and contributor pipelines and token consumption
+leaderboards. It was a reminder that the reason any of this matters is
+the people — the ones showing up, often voluntarily, often quietly, to
+maintain the tools that the rest of the world depends on.
+
+## Wrapping it all up (but not with a pretty bow just yet)
+
+AI is a tool. A powerful one, with real implications for how open
+source works. But the humans — the ones showing up, building trust,
+passing knowledge on — that's the irreplaceable part.
+
+The conversations at PyCon US this year gave me genuine hope. Not because
+we solved anything, but because the community is engaging with these
+questions seriously, honestly, and together. That's how hard things
+get figured out.
+
+I'll be bringing these conversations to the UN Open Source Summit,
+EuroPython (where I'll be keynoting), EuroSciPy, and RSECon in
+September. I hope to see many of you along the way.
+
+---
+
+*This is Part 4 of a 4-part series on pyOpenSci at PyCon US 2026.
+[Part 1: community and connection](/blog/pycon-us-2026-community-connection.html) ·
+[Part 2: Maintainer Summit](/blog/pycon-us-2026-maintainers-summit.html) ·
+[Part 3: pyOpenSci sprints](/blog/pycon-us-2026-sprints.html)*