Mozilla

In early 2024, Mozilla updated Firefox's privacy policy with language that some privacy advocates found concerning, including broader terms around data usage. While Mozilla clarified the changes were about transparency rather than new data collection, noyb filed a GDPR complaint against Mozilla over Firefox's 'Privacy Preserving Attribution' feature, arguing it turned Firefox into a tracking tool.

In February 2024, Mozilla laid off approximately 60 employees, about 5% of its workforce. The cuts notably shuttered Mozilla's advocacy division, which had focused on internet policy, privacy rights, and digital inclusion. Critics argued this contradicted Mozilla's stated mission of keeping the internet open and accessible.

In March 2023, Mozilla launched Mozilla.ai, a new startup within the Mozilla ecosystem with $30 million in initial investment, focused on building trustworthy AI. The initiative aimed to create open-source AI tools that are transparent, safe, and serve public interest. However, in late 2024, Mozilla.ai pivoted from open-source AI to building a commercial ad-targeting product, drawing criticism from the community.

Mozilla's IRS filings revealed CEO Mitchell Baker received compensation packages exceeding $5-6 million annually between 2020-2022, while the organization conducted multiple rounds of layoffs. Critics argued a nonprofit with a public mission shouldn't pay executives tech-company salaries, especially during workforce reductions.

In August 2020, Mozilla laid off approximately 250 employees, roughly a quarter of its workforce. The cuts eliminated the entire Servo engine team, the threat management team, and parts of the developer tools team. Mozilla cited the economic impact of COVID-19 and the need to restructure around commercial revenue.

Mozilla has maintained Firefox as the only major non-Chromium browser engine (Gecko), providing a critical alternative to Google's browser dominance. Firefox includes Enhanced Tracking Protection by default, blocks third-party cookies, and has consistently advocated for web standards over proprietary implementations. Mozilla also supports the development of web standards through the W3C.

In March 2014, Brendan Eich was appointed CEO of Mozilla. Within days, backlash erupted over his 2008 donation of $1,000 to support California's Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage. After dating site OkCupid urged users to boycott Firefox, Eich resigned on April 3, 2014. Mozilla's board stated it 'failed to act on clear signals' that the appointment would cause controversy.