Quick Facts
Biography
Matthew Garrett is a technologist, programmer, and free software activist who is a major contributor to a series of free software projects including Linux, GNOME, Debian, Ubuntu, and Red Hat. He is a recipient of the Free Software Award from the Free Software Foundation for his work on Secure Boot, UEFI, and the Linux kernel.
Life and career
Garrett states that he was born in Galway, Ireland and has a PhD in Genetics from the University of Cambridge. He is the author of several articles on Drosophila melanogaster (i.e., fruit fly) genetics.
Garrett has been a contributor to the GNOME and the Debian Linux projects, was an early contributor to Ubuntu, was an initial member of the Ubuntu Technical Board, worked as a contractor at Canonical Ltd., and worked at Red Hat. At Canonical Ltd. and Red Hat, Garrett worked on power management in Linux. While at Red Hat, Garrett also worked on issues relating to Secure Boot and UEFI and the Linux kernel in order to preserve users' ability to run the operating system of their choosing on hardware supporting Secure Boot. This work eventually led to his being awarded the 2013 FSF Free Software Award.
Garrett currently works at the cloud computing platform company CoreOS and is cited in the press as an expert in cloud computing issues.
He is a recipient of the Free Software Award from the Free Software Foundation for his work on Secure Boot, UEFI, and the Linux kernel.
Advocacy
Garrett has been a strong advocate for software freedom and compliance with the GNU General Public License (GPL) in the Linux kernel. For example, Garrett filed a complaint with US Customs against Fusion Garage due to violations of the GPL.
In October 2014, Garrett stated on his blog that he would no longer contribute Linux kernel changes relating to Intel hardware, in response to Intel pulling their ads from Gamasutra over the Gamergate controversy. However, after Intel took steps to demonstrate commitment to diversity in a way that he appreciated, he edited the post to reflect that he was happy to resume working with them.