This might not be a popular opinion amongst (some) developers, but to compete against Slack, you need an excellent UI and UX that matches or exceeds (not necess

This might not be a popular opinion amongst (some) developers, but to compete against Slack, you need an excellent UI and UX that matches or exceeds (not necessarily copies) the UI of Slack, with similar core features or useful new features. When I say UI and UX, I mean an interface that both looks good and is easy to use as well (they are not mutually exclusive). Of course, the app has has to be fast and reliable too. Even better if it's lightweight in size and in it's use of system resources - things that many cross-platform apps rarely achieve (including Slack). I don't think Slack has the best UX in some aspects. For example, the way you need to sign-in multiple times to separate groups feels clumsy and cumbersome. Does Slack now have too many features and functions? Does the interface feel too busy or cluttered? Do people want even more features? (Probably, although they probably want different features for their own unique needs). Can a simpler, open-source version offer an alternative? One thing that's obvious from interviews with their staff is that they take UX very seriously - it's a key component in the development of their product. If you're developing an alternative open source version, don't discount the importance of UX to your own product. Whether you agree or not that Slack is a well-designed app, there's no doubt its succeeded because it can easily be used by both developers and non-developers. Not something you can really say abour IRC, often put forward as a Slack alternative.