Khronos uses a methodical “New Initiative” process to evaluate industry interest in new standardization proposals. This process makes it straightforward for any company that perceives an industry need to propose a new collaborative activity at Khronos—whether or not they are Khronos members. By carefully assessing industry feedback on identified problems and proposed solutions, Khronos is able to prioritize standardization efforts that stand a good chance of positively impacting the industry through wide adoption. The Khronos New Initiative Process has several evaluation milestones before detailed design efforts start, enabling companies to judge whether or not they wish to participate before they enter into IP licensing commitments.

The Khronos New Initiative Process

Any company, or group of companies with common goals, can complete and sponsor a Khronos New Initiative Proposal, which should not include any detailed design contributions that may be IP encumbered, but rather focus on the high-level industry issues and opportunities to be addressed, and how Khronos can add value to the industry by working to address those problems. This Proposal is reviewed by the Khronos Board and discussed at the Khronos Technical Advisory Panel (TAP) which is open to any Khronos member, and enables the discussion of new topics or opportunities that span multiple working groups, without IP licensing ramifications. The discussions at TAP may generate updates to the Initiative Proposal, and additional sponsors to add their support. If overall member feedback is positive the sponsoring companies can forward the final Initiative Proposal to the Khronos Board.

The Board will consider the refined Initiative Proposal, the appropriateness for Khronos to explore the proposed Initiative further, and the level of support from Khronos members, and then vote on establishing an Exploratory Group. If created, an Exploratory Group is given resources to discuss and build consensus on creating a detailed Statement of Work (SOW). The SOW further explores the issues and needs of the industry raised in the Initiative Proposal and proposes how open standards could add value to the industry through suggested high-level work products and general design directions.

Depending on the nature of the proposal, the Exploratory Group may choose to issue a public call for participation, and enable participation by non-Khronos members under NDA, or seek public feedback on selected materials openly published by the Exploratory Group. To avoid IP issues, the Exploratory Group does not undertake detailed designs, but rather focuses on identifying use cases, requirements and high-level goals and objectives to be captured in the generated SOW.

If the Exploratory Group reaches consensus on proceeding with the initiative, a request is sent to the Khronos Board to vote on establishing a Working Group to execute the SOW. If a working group is established, Khronos membership is required for participation. Khronos is open to any organization that wishes to join for a voice and a vote in creating any resulting standards under Khronos’ proven IP Framework and multi-company governance process.

How To Propose a New Khronos Initiative

If your company sees a need for a new open standard in your industry, you can reach out to Khronos for more details on how to start a New Initiative Proposal by emailing .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). You do not need to be a Khronos member and there are no costs involved - we look forward to hearing from you!