We're millennial-led, and we remember:
Buying books at stores, not from Bezos.
Social connection without Zuckerberg's algorithms.
When "tech" meant possibility, not extraction.
We watched these platforms take over—local economies collapsed, democracy weaponized, our digital lives captured by billionaires. We know it doesn't have to be this way. Because we remember when it wasn't.
We're joining a movement that already exists: platform cooperatives, worker-owned businesses, and labor unions who have fought for generations. We partner with cooperative networks and people-powered movements.
This future requires all of us—tech workers, service workers, users, and organizers.
The vision
By 2045, every major digital service people depend on has a co-op alternative or federated alternative. Owned by users, governed democratically, and out of billionaire hands.
Social & communication
Social networks, messaging, and photo sharing owned by the people who use them.
Commerce & local economy
Marketplace co-ops owned by local merchants. Money stays in your community.
Media & streaming
Film, music, and news platforms that pay creators fairly and aren't beholden to advertisers.
Organizing & collaboration
Tools for movements, unions, and communities—built to empower, not surveil.
How to get involved
This is all-volunteer, built on nights and weekends. Nobody's getting paid yet—we're building the future we want to live in on our own time.
Pick an area
Social & Communication or Commerce & Local Economy. Choose what excites you—or where your skills fit best.
Join the community
Connect with builders, designers, organizers, and researchers already working on this. Monthly calls, async collaboration, and working groups.
Contribute what you can
Write code. Design interfaces. Research co-op models. Organize merchants in your city. Test prototypes. Every contribution matters.
Our guiding principles
- Democratic ownership—one member, one vote
- No venture capital—we don't build things to sell them
- Open source—the code belongs to everyone
- Privacy by design—your data is yours
- Fair compensation—workers and creators get paid fairly
- Local first—money stays in communities
Join the build
This isn't a petition or protest. It's a digital construction project. Let's build the digital infrastructure and future we want to live in. We need your help.
Get involved
Thanks! We'll be in touch soon.
Join the community
Monthly builder calls
First Tuesday of every month
8pm ET / 5pm PT
Discord
Day-to-day collaboration, working groups, and async discussion.
Coming soon
Social & communication
The problem
Every major social platform is owned by a billionaire who has bent the knee to authoritarianism. Meta monetized rage and sowed division. X became a right-wing megaphone. TikTok's fate is decided by politicians, not users. Our social lives are controlled by people who don't share our values—and we have zero say in how these platforms work.
What we're building
User-owned social platforms structured as platform cooperatives. Every user is a member-owner. Major decisions—moderation policy, algorithm design, data practices—are voted on democratically. The platform can never be sold to a billionaire because the members own it.
What already exists
Bluesky
Decentralized, open protocol. Already millions of users. Not a co-op (yet), but its open protocol means no single entity controls it.
Mastodon
Federated social network. Community-run instances. Proves decentralized social media works at scale.
Signal
Nonprofit encrypted messaging. 40M+ users. Proves you don't need ads or data harvesting to build great communication tools.
Pixelfed
Decentralized Instagram alternative. No algorithm, no ads, no Meta. Photo sharing the way it should be.
What still needs building
Who we need
Current project: Kith & Kin
A social app that optimizes for closeness, not clout. Share photos, gratitude, and moments with the people who matter most—not an algorithm.