About me

Who I am

I’m Arisu Tachibana — kernel hacker, systems builder, community architect.
I don’t just contribute to open source; I shape it. From live patching and CI plumbing to governance and global meetups, I build the tools, policies, and spaces that keep Linux moving.

What I build. I created GKernelCI (Gentoo’s kernel CI) and the kci-dev CLI to integrate with KernelCI (KCIDB) at scale, and I built Elivepatch, a distributed live kernel patching framework (born from Gentoo GSoC, later presented at Linux Plumbers). I’m also one of the creators of KTAP v1 (Kernel Test Anything Protocol), and I’ve contributed to upstream tools like kpatch (live patching) and PyPy (language runtime). I’ve sent patches on LKML for more than a decade. I’m listed in MIT’s xv6 commentary booklet acknowledgments and referenced across university OS labs worldwide.

How I lead. I’m the Gentoo Kernel Project Leader (see: GLEP-76) and a former Secretary of the Gentoo Foundation. I serve as a Contributing Member of SPI (Software in the Public Interest), admin LibrePlanet Japan & LibrePlanet Italia, and a member of the Community Data Science Collective research group. I convene study groups, staff booths, and run microconferences—most recently serving as Primary Leader of the Kernel Testing & Dependability microconference at Linux Plumbers Conference 2025.

Why I stand out. Long before buzzwords, I was reading early ecash research and playing with ELIZA—curious about intelligence and trust long before they trended. I’m proudly gyaru and a musician (8-string guitar). I mix aesthetics with engineering, because systems—and communities—run best when they’re both rigorous and human.

Open source is my practice: build clearly, document loudly, teach generously, and keep the kernel green.

Impact highlights (selected, verifiable)

  • Gentoo leadership & governance: Kernel Project Lead (GLEP-76), former Foundation Secretary; infra/sysadmin, PR, Planet, Events, GSoC mentor/admin; CJK & Artwork support.
    Links: GLEP-76 (project leadership), Gentoo wiki projects list.

  • Kernel CI & testing: Creator of GKernelCI and kci-dev; contributor on KernelCI (KCIDB/Yocto testing interop, Rust-for-Linux testing on LKML); KTAP v1 creator.
    Links: KernelCI docs/maintainers; Yocto automated-testing list; LKML Rust/KernelCI thread.

  • Live patching: Author of Elivepatch; speaker at LPC 2018/2019 live-patch tracks; upstream PR to kpatch.
    Links: LPC 2018/2019 pages; kpatch PR #772.

  • Upstream code & vendor kernels: Multiple LKML patchsets (2013→), patch carried in Toradex kernel tree; long-running Gentoo genpatches maintenance.
    Links: LKML threads (2013, 2019, 2023); Toradex commit; linux-patches.git; genpatches directory.

  • Language/runtime & ecosystem: PyPy official contributors list; recognized in Oracle JDK licensing documentation.
    Links: PyPy contributors; Oracle JDK 21 Licensing Information.

  • Decentralized web & search: Added Gentoo Wiki to Searx; added PeerTube support to Reddit Enhancement Suite—cited on Japanese Wikipedia “PeerTube” page.
    Links: Searx PR #1368; RES PR #5065; Wikipedia (PeerTube) refs.

  • Teaching, papers & academic recognition: SOSP 2017 live-patch poster; guest lecturer (University of Aizu); featured by Tokyo University of Technology; credited in MIT xv6 booklet; cited by multiple university lab repos.
    Links: SOSP poster; Aizu 2019; TUT 2017; MIT xv6 booklet; UW/PKU/ISU xv6 repos.

  • Organizations & stewardship: SPI Contributing Member (election results), LibrePlanet JP/IT admin, CDSC member, committers.top (JP) ranking, OpenHub profile, StackOverflow日本語 profile, Connpass event organizer, Gentoo dev blog.
    Links: SPI vote 2025; LibrePlanet JP/IT; CDSC People; committers.top Japan; OpenHub; SO日本語; Connpass; Gentoo blog.

  • Independent projects: Eisen (eisen-dev.org/GitHub) and Genchu orgs for systems/tooling R&D.
    Links: eisen-dev site/org; GitHub @genchu.

Gentoo project involvement (current)

See more

  • Talks: full chronological list with slides/video → Talks
  • Publications: research poster, papers & academic mentions → Publications
  • Press & Mentions: third-party coverage and org highlights → Press
  • Hardware docs: e.g., Gentoo on Intel Edison