Discord is forcing government ID verification to talk to your friends. We're building the alternative.
Discord just rolled out mandatory government ID and facial recognition. Your biometric data on their servers. Forever. No opt-out.
Intent exists because your right to private communication shouldn't come with surveillance attached.
- Actually private: E2EE for DMs using MLS protocol
- Actually lightweight: Sub-80MB RAM idle (Discord: 400MB+)
- Actually fast: WebRTC SFU for sub-100ms voice latency
- Self-hostable: Run on your own infrastructure
- Open clients: Verify privacy claims in the code
No government IDs. No facial recognition. No surveillance.
Intent is split into multiple repositories:
- intent - This repo (project hub)
- intent-protocol - Protocol specification
- intent-clients - Desktop, web, mobile clients
- intent.js - JavaScript/TypeScript bot SDK
- intent.py - Python bot SDK
- intent-migrate - Discord migration toolkit
Phase 1 MVP — nearing completion.
- Web client — React 19 + TypeScript SPA with real-time messaging, server/channel management, and auth (intent-clients)
- Protocol spec — REST API, gateway opcodes, events, voice signaling, codec requirements, MLS E2EE spec, and Discord compatibility mapping fully documented (intent-protocol)
- Python bot SDK — Gateway client, REST client with rate limiting, data models, 56+ passing tests (intent.py)
- JS/TS bot SDK — REST client with per-route rate limiting, typed error handling, dual ESM/CJS build (intent.js)
- Voice — WebRTC SFU signaling is spec'd, server-side infrastructure partially built, client-side not started
- Bot frameworks — Gateway and Client classes not yet wired in either SDK
- Desktop client — Tauri wrapper planned, not started
- MLS end-to-end encryption for DMs
- Docker image distribution and self-hosting guide
- Discord migration tools (server exporter, importer, bridge bot)
- Mobile clients (iOS, Android)
Not ready for daily use yet. Active development.
In development: One-command Docker deployment.
See docs/self-hosting.md for details.
We need you.
Find your fit:
- Frontend: Web client improvements, Tauri desktop wrapper
- Voice: WebRTC client integration, SFU testing
- Bot SDKs: Gateway clients, structure classes, command frameworks (intent.js / intent.py)
- Migration tools: Discord server exporter, importer, bridge bot
- Mobile: Swift (iOS), Kotlin (Android) - Phase 2
- Docs: Guides, tutorials, API documentation
- Testing: Break things, report bugs
Start here:
- Check open issues
- Read CONTRIBUTING.md
- Pick a repo based on your interest
- Submit a PR
Can't code?
- Star the repos
- Share with communities
- Test releases
- Write documentation
See docs/architecture.md for high-level overview.
For technical details, see intent-protocol.
Phase 1 (MVP): Text channels, voice channels, servers with roles/permissions, E2EE DMs, desktop/web clients
Phase 2 (Community): Threads, video calls, screen sharing, custom emoji, moderation tools, mobile apps
Phase 3 (Ecosystem): Plugin system, optional federation, bridges (Discord/Matrix/IRC), positional audio
Full roadmap in tasks docs (in development).
MIT License. Clients and SDKs are open source.
Server backend is proprietary (enables monetization through managed hosting).
See LICENSE for details.
When the platform you rely on demands government IDs, you have two choices: comply or leave.
We're building the third option: own it yourself.
Star the repos. Watch for releases. Contribute if you can.
Discord doesn't get to own private communication. Not anymore.