Overview
From May 18 to 20, I traveled to Minneapolis for Open Source Summit North America 2026, a Linux Foundation event, together with Yung-Tse Cheng (Mes), Chi-sheng Chen, and Jim Huang (jserv). With Mes, we presented our work on VirtIO-GPU support in semu, a lightweight system emulator capable of running Linux.
My involvement with semu began in May 2023 after hearing jserv introduce the project at CTHPC. Since then, I have worked mostly on VirtIO-related features, including virtio-blk, virtio-rng, virtio-gpu, and virtio-input. Graphics virtualization eventually became the main focus of my contribution, and Mes later pushed the work further with better 2D support, virtio-input improvements, virtio-gpu 3D, and virglrenderer integration.
Beyond the conference, we also visited the University of Minnesota, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, and Minnehaha Falls.
Presenting GPU Virtualization at OSS-NA
On the first day, we presented our talk, "Demystifying VirtIO-GPU: Building a Graphics Virtualization Bridge From Scratch".
Slides of out talk:
Technical Highlights
On the second day, Chi-sheng and jserv presented "Optimize Linux Kernel To Fit Microcontrollers With 1 MB RAM", showing how a No-MMU Linux kernel can run on STM32 F4 and H7 platforms through XIP and various size-reduction techniques.
On the third day, jserv also gave "Construct a Lean and Fast RISC-V System Emulator Capable of Running Linux", presenting recent progress on rv32emu, including planned 64-bit support and LLVM ahead-of-time compilation.
One of my favorite talks was Rob Landley's "Building the Simplest Possible Linux System". He presented with no slides in a very geek style, using only terminal demos and code walkthroughs.
The keynote conversation between Linus Torvalds and Dirk Hohndel was another highlight. Linus Torvalds shared his view on AI and how programming tools have evolved throughout his career.
OSS-NA 2026 also included a RISC-V Mini Summit, which covered recent RISC-V ecosystem updates and provided opportunities to exchange ideas with people from different organizations. For example, Mark Zhuang from SpacemiT introduced their K3 product:
Scenes from the Event
Me taking picture with the OSSNA logo inside the Minneapolis Convention Center:
Conference lunch:
Audience listening to the keynote:
Banquet conversations with Mark Zhuang and Cong Wang (a Linux kernel developer with over 1,000 commits):
Later, we also had dinner with Mark Zhuang and Cong Wang:
Drone show above the Stone Arch Bridge, celebrating the 35th anniversary of Linux:
In the City of Minneapolis
Outside the conference venue, we spent some time walking through downtown Minneapolis and visiting places such as Minneapolis City Hall and the University of Minnesota.
A street view of Minneapolis:
Minneapolis City Hall:
The entrance sign of the University of Minnesota:
Northrop Memorial Auditorium:
A meal at Hen House Eatery:
Nature and Culture in Minneapolis
We also visited the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, and Minnehaha Falls, which showed us the cultural and natural sides of this beautiful city.
Entrance of the Minneapolis Institute of Art:
Exhibits inside the Minneapolis Institute of Art:
Mark Dion, "Curator's Office":
The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, home of Spoonbridge and Cherry:
Minnehaha Falls in Minnehaha Park:
Taking photo with the Mississippi River in Minnehaha Park:
