Course · 7 chapters
The Open-Source Way
The adoption playbook: how a company actually moves from interesting to open models in production, covering sovereignty, cost, pilots, and exit ramps from lock-in.
What you'll be able to do
- Hosted API, aggregator, or self-hosted: the four-question matrix that tells you which door fits your workload.
- A due diligence checklist for data residency, license terms, and origin risk before an open model goes into production.
- A two-week bake-off template that turns a hunch about an open model into a verdict a budget owner can act on.
- A worksheet for building an honest cost comparison between hosted APIs and self-hosting, so the verdict comes from your own workload.
- A routing matrix for deciding which work goes to your frontier model and which goes to an open one, and the discipline that keeps the split honest.
- Portability tests for swapping the model behind your stack, and a who-to-bet-on framework for picking an open vendor built to last.
What's inside
- 1The Open-Source Way: Start Here
The 2026 shift toward open weights within striking distance of frontier at a fraction of the price, and the six-decision playbook for moving from curiosity to production.
- 2Three Ways to Consume Open Models
Hosted API, aggregator, or self-hosted: the four-question matrix that tells you which door fits your workload.
- 3Sovereignty & Compliance
A due diligence checklist for data residency, license terms, and origin risk before an open model goes into production.
- 4The Pilot That Proves It
A two-week bake-off template that turns a hunch about an open model into a verdict a budget owner can act on.
- 5TCO, Honestly
A worksheet for building an honest cost comparison between hosted APIs and self-hosting, so the verdict comes from your own workload.
- 6The Hybrid Stack
A routing matrix for deciding which work goes to your frontier model and which goes to an open one, and the discipline that keeps the split honest.
- 7Exit Ramps & Vendor Durability
Portability tests for swapping the model behind your stack, and a who-to-bet-on framework for picking an open vendor built to last.
Earn a certificate
Complete all chapters to receive your certificate of completion.