Microsoft has called on all firms to embrace open source software.
The tech giant - which at one point dismissed the idea - is now fully behind and actively promoting the model and urged the industry to learn lessons with more people than ever working remotely.
In a blog post, Sarah Novotny - Microsoft's open source chief for the Azure Office of the CTO - said: "2020 fundamentally changed how many companies and teams work…
"However, for those of us who have been deeply engaged in open source, remote work has been our norm for many years because open source communities are large, globally distributed, and require effective collaboration from developers around the world."
Novotny notes that Microsoft's Open Source Programs Office (OSPO) has helped push its open source effort while preparing to offer more of its tech in this way.
Along with Google and IBM, the firm has also joined the Open Source Security Foundation (OSSF).
She added: "A few years ago if you wanted to get several large tech companies together to align on a software initiative, establish open standards, or agree on a policy, it would often require several months of negotiation, meetings, debate, back and forth with lawyers…
"Open source has completely changed this: it has become an industry-accepted model for cross-company collaboration.”
