Are you a young developer looking for open source projects to contribute to? Joomla ticks all the boxes, says Charvi Mehra, who had the opportunity to work on an AI integration framework for Joomla: "You get to work on real projects, grow your skills, and connect with amazing people from around the world."
There are several ways to contribute to Joomla: through Google Summer of Code (GSoC), the Joomla Academy, or by volunteering in a team.
Charvi Mehra started contributing to Joomla when she was a student at the Cluster Innovation Centre, Delhi University, India.The first project she got involved in was focused on making testing new releases much easier and faster. She explains: "Normally, testers spend hours setting up environments and clicking through menus to catch bugs, but our project automated this process using Docker and Cypress. With just a few clicks, anyone could test a fresh Joomla site, a backup, or even a live site." That particular project was meant to be part of Google Summer of Code, but Joomla didn't make it into GSoC that year. Charvi worked on it anyway: "This project showed me that contributing to open source isn't just about formal programs," she says. "There are so many ways to get involved and make a meaningful impact."
Meaningful contributions
Charvi had heard of Joomla before she started contributing: "But I honestly had no idea it was open source. I only knew it as one of the popular content management systems, without really thinking about the people behind it or the possibility of contributing myself." At that time, she had no idea that I could actually solve bugs and contribute to something used by so many people worldwide. "The idea that my contributions could actually impact thousands of users was both exciting and a bit intimidating at first. I had this preconceived notion that contributing to such a well-known project would be difficult or that I wouldn't be taken seriously as a student. But the reality was completely different, everyone was incredibly encouraging and patient with newcomers."
AI API integration
In 2025, a Joomla project did make it into Google Summer of Code: building a provider-agnostic AI API layer between Joomla extensions and AI services. Charvi had some experience with AI, in machine learning and health data analytics, and she wanted to explore new areas within AI. For her, this project felt like the perfect opportunity to challenge herself and learn something different.
Charvi's role in the AI Integration project was to design and build the core framework, with guidance and support from her mentors Shivam Rajput, Benjamin Trenkle, Tushar Malik, and Eoin Oliver. "I worked on abstracting how different AI providers communicate, unifying their request structures, authentication, and responses. In practice, this meant integrating providers like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Ollama into a single provider-agnostic layer, so developers only need to write their extension logic once and let users choose whichever provider they prefer." And that's not all: "Beyond the technical side, I also learned a lot about design decisions, collaboration, and how to make a project that is both powerful and simple to use. It was a very fun and rewarding experience."
Technical challenges
The biggest challenge for Charvi was figuring out how to create a unified interface when every AI provider works completely differently. Each provider has its own way of structuring requests, formatting responses, and handling authentication. "At first, I had no idea how to approach this problem but figuring out how to abstract these differences into a common interface was a real learning curve," she says. "I also had to spend a lot of time understanding the architecture of the project itself and how to organize it in a way that would stay scalable as more providers get added in the future." She decided to find out how similar problems were being solved in other CMS and extensions: "Reviewing existing solutions gave me a lot of perspective and ideas on how to approach the architecture for Joomla. It still wasn't easy, but working closely with my mentors. They helped me break down the overwhelming parts into smaller, manageable steps, which made the whole process much more approachable."
Learn and grow as a developer
Charvi learned a lot during her time at Joomla, both personally and professionally. "On the technical side, I explored a completely new dimension of AI to integrate different AI providers. I also learned how to systematically analyze requirements, research possible solutions, and iterate based on testing," she says. "On a personal level, I've grown in confidence and collaboration. This experience has been a big step forward for me as both a developer and a contributor."
She's really proud of what she was able to build by the end of the project. "It feels incredibly rewarding to create something that other developers can actually use. But honestly, what I'm equally proud of is how much I've grown personally. I'm naturally quite introverted and used to feel very underconfident when presenting or speaking in public. However, presenting my work at the recent JUG London meeting went really well - I felt super prepared and confident. It's amazing how working on something can push you out of your comfort zone in the best way. Technical achievement is one thing, but developing the confidence to share my work has been just as valuable for my growth as a developer."
A warm and encouraging community to support you
Charvi has experienced a lot of support from the Joomla community. "From the very beginning, everyone has been incredibly welcoming, supportive, and approachable. Whenever I faced challenges, there was always someone willing to guide me or share their experience." What she likes most about Joomla? "It's the perfect mix of a powerful, flexible CMS and a truly supportive community."
She would definitely recommend young developers to contribute to Joomla, through GSoC, the Joomla Academy, or otherwise: "There's so much to learn, and contributing is both fun and rewarding. You get to work on real projects, grow your skills, and connect with amazing people from around the world." Joomla has a lot to offer to young developers: "You have a lot of freedom to explore ideas, take initiative, and contribute in meaningful ways. You are not just following instructions, you have the independence to shape projects, learn new technologies, and see your work make a real impact on a global platform. It's a great space to grow, experiment, and make a difference while being supported by an encouraging community. Everyone was incredibly welcoming and supportive, which really built my confidence as a developer."
Come and join us!
Are you a young developer interested in contributing to open source software? Then we'd love to meet you!
These are the steps you should take to join our community:
- Head over to our Mattermost channel: joom.la/chat
- You'll be redirected to the Joomla Identity Portal, create an account and you'll get added to the Town Square channel on Mattermost
- Search for the channel called New to Joomla? Start here and join that as well (if you can't find it, ask in Town Square)
- Introduce yourself
- Join a New to the Joomla Community Session, they're on the 15th of each month
- We'll help you get settled in and find you a team / project to contribute to!