Don’t Bully. Build.

Tushar Pednekar
Sep 30
3 min read

Not long ago, one of our closest partners faced an ultimatum. They were told:

Choose between us or SynxDB. If you don’t, you may face lawsuits.

That’s not a partnership. That’s bullying.

At Synx, we’ve seen this play out too many times. A large vendor closes the source, raises prices, and pressures customers and partners with fear tactics instead of innovation.

It’s not new, but it is disappointing.

The Turning Point — A Lesson from ESA

Back in 2024 at Postgres Conference NYC, the European Space Agency (ESA) gave a powerful talk.

“Greenplum is no longer OSS - change of operations in mid-flight.” (Conference link, Slides)

Think about that. ESA, a space agency flying missions in real time, had to face the reality that the database they were depending on had suddenly been taken away from them as an open-source option. Closed. Overnight. No roadmap, no community, no voice.

That moment of broken changes was an inspiration for us. If even ESA could be left stranded mid-flight, then enterprises everywhere needed a new path forward. That was one of the sparks that led to the creation of Synx Data Labs, SynxDB, and our deep commitment to Apache Cloudberry under the Apache Software Foundation.

We saw clearly: openness and community governance are not optional. They are mission-critical.

Let’s Set the Record Straight

Fast forward to today, and some vendors still try to use intimidation instead of innovation. But here’s the truth… SynxDB is built on a solid, open-source foundation:

SynxDB v1–v3 are derived from Apache 2.0–licensed Greenplum, released openly prior to May 2024.
SynxDB v4 is an independent evolution, built on PostgreSQL 14+ & Apache Cloudberry, with innovations like elastic storage-compute separation, advanced fault tolerance, and SynxML for AI-native analytics.
No proprietary IP. No vendor lock-in. No legal risk. Customers deploying SynxDB are fully protected under the Apache 2.0 license.

This isn’t just our opinion. We maintain verifiable GitHub commit histories, repository snapshots, and license compliance documentation. It’s transparent. It’s open. It’s defensible.

Standing With Our Partners

When the partner asked us directly, “What happens if they sue?” our answer was simple:

We stand behind you. Always.

If any partner or customer faces baseless legal threats for choosing SynxDB, Synx Data Labs will take responsibility. We will defend the freedom of enterprises to choose open innovation over intimidation.

That’s not just business. That's the principle.

Why Synx Is the Safer Path

Contrast the choice:

Closed-source Greenplum (post-2024): vendor lock-in, rising costs, fear-driven sales tactics.
SynxDB + Apache Cloudberry (ASF-governed): open-source transparency, global community governance, enterprise-grade innovation .

With SynxDB Elastic, enterprises gain cloud-native, elastic scalability that closed systems cannot match. With SynxML, they get AI directly inside the database, powering next-generation analytics .

This isn’t about replacing one database with another. It’s about giving enterprises a platform that’s safe, future-proof, and innovative.

Don’t Bully. Build.

At Synx, we refuse to play the game of fear. Instead, we choose to build — with our partners, with our customers, and with the global open-source community.

So here’s our message to every enterprise leader, every partner, every developer reading this:

👉 Don’t let yourself be bullied into paying more for less.

👉 Don’t let anyone scare you into abandoning open source.

👉 Choose openness. Choose innovation. Choose a community.