When is multiplication in a Banach algebra open?

We develop the theory of Banach algebras whose multiplication (regarded as a bilinear map) is open. We demonstrate that such algebras must have topological stable rank 1, however the latter condition is strictly weaker and implies only that products of non-empty open sets have non-empty interior. We then investigate openness of convolution in semigroup algebras resolving in the negative a problem of whether convolution in ℓ1(N0) is open. By appealing to ultraproduct techniques, we demonstrate that neither in ℓ1(Z) nor in ℓ1(Q) convolution is uniformly open. The problem of openness of multiplication in Banach algebras of bounded operators on Banach spaces and their Calkin algebras is also discussed.