Buildroot is an open-source tool that generates embedded Linux systems through cross-compilation. A single build produces the cross-compilation toolchain, root filesystem, kernel image and bootloader for a target device, using several thousand packages. Developers of embedded products run it on their own computers rather than as a hosted service. The project is distributed under the GNU General Public License version 2 or, at the user's option, any later version.
Buildroot is developed in the open by a community of contributors who work through a GitLab repository and a mailing list. The French Buildroot Association, a non-profit registered under the French law of 1901, supports the project. Because there is no vendor cloud service, sovereignty questions lie mainly in the build chain and in the choice of packages. An organisation can inspect the source code, have it audited and maintain it in-house.