Matrix is a federated chat system, where individual servers connect together to share and serve many users. In some ways it's similar to Discord, but sometimes it's a little more like IRC.
Discord has shown again and again, with increasing frequency, that it does not care about our data (breach coverage), does not care about protecting children (the Grid ban / PhotoDNA false positives), and does not respect our privacy (their new AI moderation and scanning). Corporate Discord is only seeking to extract money and data from us, and to bend over backward handing our sensitive data to governments and third parties.
I won't say I don't appreciate, and even like, a lot about Discord , especially looking back over the years. But this is too much. Too much drama, too much worrying about whether my largest collection of communities and friends could be switched off overnight, or sold to the highest bidder.
I'll be migrating slowly to Matrix, starting by mirroring the communities I control directly, and inviting friends both on Discord and Matrix. My hope is that more people migrate off the platform over time, and that more communities federate and join up. This doesn't mean I'll be removing my Discord presence any time soon, just that I'll always be looking toward a brighter path.