(1) we are in a world where open source is the way.
(2) it’s somewhat a reaction to the state of modern software, both in UI paradigm and in increasing cartelization.
To me, it’s hope.
I think you're in a bubble. The world still runs primarily on closed source and proprietary software and services.
If you're into idiotic discourse, go ahead and list 1000 open source projects on SourceForge just to "strengthen" your argument.
Tell me - what do most people in industry use for: image editing, video editing, audio and sound design, CAD, EDA, ERP, EMR, logistics, finance - you know actually getting stuff done with those things you mentioned above? Never mind that the vast majority of software written is line of business software.
The landscape of free/open source software has not changed much since the 90s. The market share has increased, some of the names have changed, but it's still the same types of stuff that it excels at (languages, OSes, frameworks).
But we’re seeing a success story for open source on a scale almost never seen before when it comes to AI.
Yes, Stability AI is doing great stuff with making this tech freely available for now, but it's not clear how sustainable that is in the absence of large VC funds. The players with the bigger more stable budgets are going the proprietary route.