Zed, the GPU-accelerated, Rust-built code editor from the creators of Atom and Tree-sitter, just made a quiet but consequential licensing change: it has removed AGPL from its core repository and replaced it with standard GPL. The move is aimed squarely at unblocking developers who wanted to use Zed at work but kept running into a wall with their legal teams.
When Zed first went open source, the code was available under a copyleft license, with GPL covering the editor and AGPL covering server-side components. That split made sense philosophically, but it created a real-world adoption problem that the team has now decided to address head-on.
Why AGPL Was the Blocker
To understand why this matters, it helps to know what makes AGPL different from regular GPL. The AGPL builds upon the standard GPL by addressing software use over a network, requiring that any modified version accessed over a network be made available to users under the same license. That single clause is what gives corporate lawyers headaches.
The AGPL is notorious for its strict terms, which can be a deterrent for large companies. Google, for instance, has explicitly banned the use of AGPL software on its corporate servers due to concerns about the license's requirement for source code disclosure whenever the software interacts with a network, stemming from the risk of inadvertently exposing proprietary software.
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