This is not the answer you're looking for, but technically it is a valid answer to your question. I'm a software engineer at Google, where I've contributed to

This is not the answer you're looking for, but technically it is a valid answer to your question. I'm a software engineer at Google, where I've contributed to Google Servlet Engine, Omaha (https://github.com/google/omaha https://github.com/google/omaha), Firefox, Chromium, and Android, among other open-source projects. Some of these are closed-source projects that were later open-sourced, some are developed in the open, and some are run as a hybrid between the two. I also develop random crap on the weekends, and Google gives us wide latitude to open-source that work if we want. I recognize you're asking whether one can start with open-source contributions and eventually receive compensation for it. I'm answering that in my case I am compensated for a job that happens to involve lots of open-source contributions, which is the same end result but starting from a different place.