Mage-OS 2025 in Review: Growth, Releases, and Community Achievements

As 2025 draws to a close, it’s time to reflect on a remarkable year for Mage-OS. From major software releases to community expansion and strengthened governance, this year has demonstrated the full potential of collaborative open-source development.

One of the most visible highlights was the release of the new Mage-OS admin theme by Artem Kozynets. More than just a visual refresh, it delivered a modern, clean, and accessible backend experience compatible with Mage-OS, Magento 2.4, and Adobe Commerce. Independently developed, open source, and rapidly adopted, the theme quickly became a cornerstone of Mage-OS 1.1 and is on track to become the default. Its supporting tools, the theme switcher and the M137 Figma design system, lowered barriers for testing, design, and further innovation.

Community activity remained strong throughout the year. Mage-OS welcomed new members and partners, expanded its contributor base, and increased its presence at key ecosystem events. 

Governance and structure evolved as well. Board and committee elections opened new leadership opportunities, discussions around module maturity and semantic versioning began, and documentation saw a leap forward with AI-powered indexing via DeepWiki, making Mage-OS more accessible for newcomers and contributors alike.

Mage-OS also hosted its first online hackathon, which was a resounding success. Participants contributed actively and engaged with the community, laying the groundwork for future events.

Taken together, 2025 underscored what Mage-OS is becoming: a serious, community-led alternative in the ecommerce space, capable of shipping, adapting, and growing without compromising its open-source core. The direction is clear, and the foundation is stronger than ever.

Major Releases

Mage-OS continued to evolve with significant releases:

Mage-OS 1.2.0 (June) – Based on Magento Open Source 2.4.8-p1, this release included backend theme enhancements, smoother view transitions, scrollbar-gutter fixes, and improved media handling.

Mage-OS 1.3.0 (August) – Built on Magento Open Source 2.4.8-p2, this update delivered refined backend interfaces, optimized data grids and modals, enhanced media galleries, bug fixes, and improved LESS configuration. Both releases reflect the tireless contributions of our community and the importance of collaborative testing and feedback.

Mage-OS 2.0 (October) – Built on Magento Open Source 2.4.8-p3, this major release introduces enhanced security with PCI DSS 4.0 compliance, AI-powered automatic translation, advanced inventory management, SEO tuning improvements, and significant Page Builder enhancements including embedded widgets and template import/export. Performance upgrades like back/forward cache support and speculative preloading improve Core Web Vitals, while community contributions address PHP 8.4 compatibility, admin JavaScript fixes, and USPS API migration. Mage-OS 2.0 reflects the power of community-driven innovation and the continuous evolution of open-source e-commerce.

Community Growth and Leadership

2025 marked a year of organizational milestones:

• Mage-OS held its second General Assembly, welcoming 135 members and 13 partner organizations.

• A new board was elected for the 2025-2027 term: Vinai Kopp as President, David Lambauer as Vice President, and Cezary Kozon as Treasurer. Francis Michael Gallagher joined the Business Control Committee.

• The assembly reaffirmed a commitment to transparency, passing all resolutions unanimously and sharing a detailed financial report. Mage-OS generated over 270,000 PLN in revenue in 2024, with a net surplus exceeding 163,000 PLN.

Events

Mage-OS strengthened its global presence through active participation in key industry events:

• Meet Magento France was a standout, bringing together hundreds of merchants, developers, agencies, and partners in a sold-out, high-energy event that showcased the continuing relevance of open-source commerce in Europe.

• Meet Magento Italy offered valuable networking and community feedback, helping Mage-OS improve its visibility and approach for future events.

• Meet Magento Kiev highlighted local community engagement, with presentations such as Vinai’s on Hyvä certifications being well received.

• Meet Magento Netherlands included a Mage-OS hackathon focused on UI Kit themes, AI modules, and performance tools.

• Meet Magento New York, Canada, and Poland brought together developers and merchants to explore modern commerce trends, modular architecture, and real-world use cases.

• Online Hackathon: participants experimented with AI modules, rebuilt installers, and worked on a simple blog module, all in a collaborative, live environment.

Technical Progress

On the technical front, progress was steady and tangible. Infrastructure improvements, including the migration from Terraform to OpenTofu, enhanced system resilience. Core features such as the reservations grid were improved, CMS and SEO tools advanced, and AI-assisted features quietly became more capable behind the scenes. Mage-OS 1.1 and 1.1.1 releases aligned the platform with Magento 2.4.8 while introducing significant UX and stability enhancements.

Challenges also shaped the year. A temporary GitHub outage highlighted the risks of third-party dependencies. The community responded quickly, maintained system integrity, and emerged with a stronger focus on redundancy and long-term resilience.

Key technical achievements focused on stability, usability, and community engagement:

• The new Admin theme and UIKit frontend theme significantly improved the merchant and developer experience.

• The Community Modules Directory launched, providing a centralized hub for extensions, including AI-powered tools and projects in progress.

• Mage-OS began exploring PCI-DSS compliance, security enhancements, and independent module versioning to support a more modular and maintainable ecosystem.

• Several projects were archived to reduce clutter, while new modules, such as the Theme Optimization Module, delivered faster page transitions and polished interactions.

Significant work this year focused on the demo environment and preparing the community for Mage-OS 2.0:

• The demo environment now automatically resets every six hours, with reliable sample data installation and PHP 8.3, OpenSearch, and Redis support. Plans for Varnish integration, UI Kit theme inclusion, multiple store views, and clear module documentation will further improve usability.

• Mage-OS 1.3.1 addressed build process issues quickly, while Mage-OS 2.0 development advanced with improved version management, package generator refactoring, and preview builds for early testing.

• Frontend improvements included the Theme Optimization module with Back-Forward Cache support and UI Kit refinements, removing Knockout.js and reducing RequireJS dependencies to enhance performance and compatibility.

Mage-OS 2.0: A Major MilestoneOctober 2025 marked the release of Mage-OS 2.0, a transformative version built on Magento Open Source 2.4.8-p3. This release represents the culmination of months of community collaboration, innovation, and technical development.

Key highlights include:

• Enhanced Security: PCI DSS 4.0 compliance with stricter admin policies, session handling, and password rules.

• AI-Powered Automatic Translation: Full catalog translation with DeepL, OpenAI, or Google Gemini, including cron-based automation and manual override options.

• Advanced Inventory Management: A new Inventory Reservations Grid for better stock visibility and management.

• SEO and Page Builder Enhancements: Meta Robots Tag module for fine-grained control over search indexing, CMS Widget integration in Page Builder, and Import/Export workflows for templates across instances.

• Performance Optimization: Back/Forward Cache, speculative preloading, and smooth page transitions improve user experience and Core Web Vitals.

• Core Platform Improvements: Community contributions included fixes for admin JavaScript errors, configurable product exports, PHP 8.4 compatibility, and USPS API migration.

Mage-OS Lab: Fostering InnovationThe Mage-OS Lab has proven to be a critical incubator for new ideas. Multiple Lab modules were graduated into the core distribution this year, demonstrating how experimentation and community contributions can drive the evolution of open-source e-commerce.

Open Source HighlightsNovember saw a major boost for the Mage-OS ecosystem as the Hyvä Theme became fully open source, enabling unrestricted customization, contributions, and broader adoption across Mage-OS stores.

Other technical advancements in 2025 include:

• AI Integration: Planning for a central AI module to manage API credentials, model selection, and feature integration across Mage-OS, including Page Builder enhancements.

• Installer and Migration Tools: Development of CLI and web installers, plus a streamlined meta-package to simplify migration from Magento.

• Performance Optimizations: Early testing of PHP 8.4 lazy object loading showed ~10% performance gains, with ongoing improvements in bfcache and Theme Optimization modules.

• Infrastructure and DevOps: Docker-based “Magento-in-a-box” environments, GitHub Actions standardization, and demo environments with automated resets to ensure consistency.

• Documentation and Benchmarks: Updated guides for performance, Page Builder, Varnish bfcache, and Mage-OS module best practices.

Events and Outreach

The community thrived offline as well:

• Mage-OS participated in conferences like Meet Magento events and meet ups, connecting with contributors, merchants, and enthusiasts.

• Local community gatherings fostered collaboration beyond the screen, allowing members to share experiences, challenges, and solutions in person.

Looking Ahead to 2026

Mage-OS enters 2026 in a strong position, with clear priorities:

• Continuing major releases, including Mage-OS 3.0, with modular packaging and possible AI enhancements.

• Strengthening community contributions through tech meetings, module development, and documentation.

• Expanding outreach via the upcoming Ambassador Program to grow our global presence.

Acknowledgements

None of this would be possible without our dedicated community. From developers to testers, financial overseers to event organizers, every contribution matters.

Join Us

Mage-OS is built by the community, for the community. Whether you’re a developer, merchant, or enthusiast, 2026 is the perfect year to get involved. Join our weekly tech meetings on Discord, contribute to modules and documentation, or share your ideas on GitHub. Every contribution drives the platform forward.

Here’s to another year of innovation, collaboration, and open-source excellence. Mage-OS continues to grow, thanks to you.