Looking for a Discord alternative? Roomy is an open-source, decentralized platform built for communities that value privacy and control.

Roomy is an open-source Discord alternative built on the AT Protocol (ATProto), the same protocol that powers Bluesky, with ActivityPub (the protocol behind Mastodon, Pixelfed, Pleroma, and others) planned for the near future. Currently in alpha, it sits somewhere between Matrix and Discord in terms of its practical position in the broader chat ecosystem.

That said, it aims to fill the niche currently dominated by Discord, while remaining a free, fully federated solution for full user freedom and greater privacy. In this article, we’ll look at what Roomy is today, what it’s aiming to become, and what it could bring to this space.

  • swicano@programming.devEnglish
    7·
    2 days ago

    Does it support voice yet? Seemed to be very unclear to me, and that’s 90% of what I use discord for

    • XLE@piefed.socialEnglish
      10·
      2 days ago

      I agree. I think the average person just wants Roomy (or Matrix) to do what Discord already does. Voice. Video. Desktop streaming. All this haggling about protocols and decentralization don’t matter, but that’s what the article (and the app?) seem most focused on.

      • other_cat@piefed.zipOPEnglish
        4·
        2 days ago

        I wouldn’t be surprised if this wasn’t aimed for the average user, but unfortunately that means greatly diminished chances of success.

        • XLE@piefed.socialEnglish
          4·
          2 days ago

          I really hope the project doesn’t end up being basically Matrix again.We already have a nerdy group chat app that doesn’t really work well as a Discord replacement. We don’t need two.

          • other_cat@piefed.zipOPEnglish
            2·
            2 days ago

            Not to mention the other two discord clones I can remember off the top of my head. Guilded (Owned by Roblox IIRC?) and Revolt Stoat, which I never hear anyone talk about, especially after their name change.