Mozilla Foundation facts for kids
.svg){kind=logo} |
|
| Formation | July 15, 2003 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Mozilla Organization |
| Type | 501(c)(3) |
| Registration no. | C2543436 |
| Origins | Mountain View, California |
|
Region
|
United States |
| Products |
|
| Mark Surman | |
| Nabiha Syed | |
| Brian Behlendorf, Helen Turvey, Mitchell Baker, Alondra Nelson, Amy Keating, Nicole Wong, Edwin Macharia, Raffi Krikorian, Zain Habboo | |
| Subsidiaries |
|
|
Revenue (2020)
|
$441 million |
|
Staff (2019)
|
80 |
|
Volunteers (2019)
|
1000+ |
The Mozilla Foundation is a special kind of organization in the United States. It is a non-profit organization. This means it uses its money to help people, not to make a profit for owners.
Its main goal is to support and guide the open source Mozilla project. Open source means that the computer code is free for anyone to see and use.
The Foundation was started in July 2003. It helps set the rules for how Mozilla software is made. It also manages important computer systems. Plus, it protects Mozilla's names and logos.
The Foundation owns two companies that help it. One is the Mozilla Corporation. This company makes the Mozilla Firefox web browser. The other is MZLA Technologies Corporation. This company works on the Mozilla Thunderbird email client.
The Mozilla Foundation is based in Mountain View, California, in the Silicon Valley. It believes in an open and fair internet for everyone.
Contents
How Mozilla Started
The story of Mozilla began on February 23, 1998. A company called Netscape created the Mozilla Organization. This group helped develop the Mozilla Application Suite.
Later, Netscape's parent company, AOL, reduced its support for Mozilla. So, on July 15, 2003, the Mozilla Foundation was created. This made sure Mozilla could keep going strong. AOL helped by giving equipment and money to start the Foundation.
In September 2019, the Mozilla Foundation worked with other groups. They started something called Grant for the Web. This was a large fund of money. It helped new technologies and ideas for the internet.
In November 2024, the Mozilla Foundation made some changes. They adjusted their team to deal with changes in the internet world.
Mozilla's Companies
The Mozilla Foundation has a few special companies. These companies help it do its work. They also help create popular internet tools.
Mozilla Corporation
The Mozilla Corporation was created on August 3, 2005. It is a company that pays taxes. Its job is to help the non-profit goals of the Mozilla Foundation.
This company is in charge of making Mozilla products. This includes the Mozilla Firefox web browser. It also handles advertising and giving out Mozilla products.
The Mozilla Corporation also works with other businesses. These partnerships help bring in money. This money then supports the Mozilla Foundation's work.
For many years, a lot of its money came from a deal with Google. Google was the main search engine in the Firefox browser. Later, Mozilla also worked with Yahoo! Search and Yandex Search. In China, they worked with Baidu.
Mozilla China
Beijing Mozilla Online Ltd is also known as Mozilla China. It is a company fully owned by the Mozilla Corporation. Mozilla China has its main office in Beijing.
MZLA Technologies Corporation
On January 28, 2020, the Mozilla Foundation announced a new company. It is called MZLA Technologies Corporation. This company now manages the Mozilla Thunderbird project.
This change allows the Thunderbird team to explore new products and services. It also helps them get money through different partnerships.
Mozilla Ventures
On November 2, 2022, Mozilla started Mozilla Ventures. This is a special fund that invests money. It supports new companies that are just starting.
These startups create products or technologies. They must also support the values of the Mozilla Manifesto. This is a list of principles that guide Mozilla's work.
How Mozilla Gets Money
The Mozilla Foundation gets money in a few ways. It receives donations from people who support its mission. It also gets a small part of the money earned by the Mozilla Corporation.
When it first started in 2003, it received money from AOL. It also got a donation from Mitch Kapor.
For many years, a big part of Mozilla's money came from search engine deals. For example, from 2004 to 2014, Google Search was the main search engine in Firefox. This deal brought in a lot of money for Mozilla.
Later, in November 2014, Mozilla partnered with Yahoo!. Yahoo! Search became the main search engine for Firefox in North America. This partnership also brought in money.
However, in November 2017, Mozilla decided to switch back to Google. Google became the main search engine for Firefox again.
People at Mozilla
Nabiha Syed became the executive director of the Mozilla Foundation on May 15, 2024.
As of May 2025, the Mozilla Foundation has a board of directors. This board helps guide the organization. There are nine members on the board:
- Nicole Wong (Chair)
- Brian Behlendorf
- Helen Turvey
- Amy Keating
- Mark Surman - He is also the president of the Foundation.
- Alondra Nelson
- Edwin Macharia
- Raffi Krikorian
- Zain Habboo
Mozilla's Good Deeds
Mozilla also uses its money to help others. In 2006, they gave $10,000 to OpenBSD. This money helped develop OpenSSH, which is a tool that keeps internet connections safe. Mozilla knew that OpenSSH was very important for developers.
In 2010, the Mozilla Foundation worked with the Knoxville Zoo. They wanted to help raise awareness about endangered red pandas. Red pandas are sometimes called "Firefox" because of their color.
Two red panda cubs born at the zoo became part of the Mozilla community. People online voted to name the cubs Spark and Ember. Mozilla even showed a live video stream of the cubs for several months!
See also
In Spanish: Fundación Mozilla para niños
- List of Mozilla products
