itch kept recommending this game jam to me, so I looked at it and it turns out it's made by GitHub, property of Microsoft. The other host is a representative from GitHub, so you should consider this jam a big advertisement for GitHub. 

Secondly, the jam is forcing you to use GitHub to host your source code an assets, allowing Microsoft to steal them to train their AI. Since the recent GitHub CEO departure, it's clear that Microsoft will be using GitHub to provides data for its gigantic AI needs: https://www.tomshardware.com/software/programming/github-folds-into-microsoft-fo...
Do you really want to provide for free your work to Microsoft?

At a larger scale, Microsoft is an evil mega-corporation, they recently forced Windows 11 on everyone (telling people what have an unsupported PC to just buy a new one), and are actively fueling wars by selling their tech to armies of various countries.

I encourage you to find another jam to join, there are tons of them on itch: https://itch.io/jams

damn, I knew this one felt off for some reason

1. You don't have to upgrade to windows 11 if you don't want to. A lack of security updates is beaten out by common sense every time. Plus there's always Linux.

2. If you're in a game jam team then you're already working for free unless you are explicitly being paid by said team. I also doubt the training AI would get from any game jam work would be substantial enough to be worried about, and if it is then you're generally improving on a tool that most anyone can use.

3. War profiteering is morally neutral at best. MS, while they are greedy to a fault, is not actually pulling the trigger on anyone. They are not morally responsible for deaths caused by people using their products. If person A uses an Apple Stabby2™ knife on Person B, that doesn't mean Apple is responsible for it. Person A could have just as easily used a sharpened stick if the intent was already there.

good on you for highlighting this

I feel like I just stumbled upon A conspiracy board

Doubtful that AI needs our code. Been here and done that. I think game jams are more about developing skills. Eventually, when AI runs everything, we'll have something to do. A lot of people crochet. We like to make games. Seriously, AI can't imagine, at least not yet. It is still copying and riffing on what already exists.

It's actually  tough to find a jam currently that:

• has a decent amount of participants
• generous  timeframe
• not some horror/spooktober/spookvember theme
• sensible rating criteria

An while I opposed the open source thing in the first place, I now find it intrigueging to be able to look at the code if I wonder "wow, thats cool,  how did the game do that?"

That being said - I think you can close the source after the ratings are in.  And I think AI is not able to profit from this jam a lot. Too many different technologies involved.

But tbh: I already wondered - if this is backed by big corp - why are there no prices involved? 

OP: I dare you to create a jam  with  the same set of rules just not the open source/github one. I would join  and submit there given that enough participants show up

Yeah its to promote GitHub, always has been. Game Off has been around a while and is an established jam.

Yes MS is used on military kit. Its also used on hospital kit. Its used everywhere.

Are MS the worst corporation? Probably not - X, Amazon, Apple, Google and Facebook/Meta all spring to mind as corporations that are overall far “more” evil than MS.

Will they use the code to train AI? The internet is about 50% AI generated at the moment so training an AI on the internet now brings you closer to model collapse, but maybe they will. But will I be writing my best production quality code for a 1 month game jam using secret proprietary tech? No. No I’ll be rushing like a lunatic and sticking things together with duck tape and wishful thinking because its a 1 month game jam and I have a life and a job and a weird obsession with eating sushi that now I write it out seems unrelated.

If you really care about privacy, then your only option these days is to get off the internet.