> Ollama is a Y Combinator-backed (W21) startup, founded by engineers who previously built a Docker GUI that was acquired by Docker Inc. The playbook is familiar: wrap an existing open-source project in a user-friendly interface, build a user base, raise money, then figure out monetization.

    The progression follows the pattern cleanly:

    1. Launch on open source, build on llama.cpp, gain community trust
    2. Minimize attribution, make the product look self-sufficient to investors
    3. Create lock-in, proprietary model registry format, hashed filenames that don’t work with other tools
    4. Launch closed-source components, the GUI app
    5. Add cloud services, the monetization vector