Acter
Acter is a Danish non-profit association building a mobile-first, end-to-end encrypted organizing app on the Matrix protocol for grassroots activists and civil-society movements, distributed free via app stores and supported through NGO partnerships.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersAarhus, Denmark
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Acter does
Acter is a Danish-registered non-profit association that develops and operates the Acter App, a secure, mobile-first organizing platform built specifically for activists, grassroots movements, and civil society organizations operating under elevated surveillance and repression risk. The product combines end-to-end encrypted chat over the decentralized Matrix protocol with nested spaces for hierarchical organizing, tasks and task lists, an in-app event calendar, a Pin wall for shared resources, and a Boosts feed for urgent push-notification updates. The technical stack is Flutter (cross-platform mobile and desktop), Rust (native SDK), and the open Matrix protocol for federated, self-hostable infrastructure, with Firebase Cloud Messaging and Apple Push Notification service handling push delivery. No phone number is required to register, metadata collection is intentionally limited, and a low-data mode supports users on slow connections.
Acter is co-created with the activist community and operates as a non-profit (The Acter Association, registered in Denmark) rather than a venture-backed company. The team is 9 people distributed across 7 countries (Aarhus, Lisbon, Nairobi, Boston, Shenyang, and others) working fully remote. Distribution is self-serve through the iOS App Store, Google Play, Mac App Store, Microsoft Store, Linux AUR, and direct GitHub downloads, with awareness driven by a podcast ("Digital Activism" / "Hack The System"), community channels, and partnerships with NGOs and civil-society infrastructure providers.
The business model is a hybrid: a free-forever tier for individual activists and small groups, a planned subscription tier for larger organizations requiring additional features and support, and partnership revenue from NGOs who fund decentralized hosting and the mission. Named partners include ActionAid, CISU, Amnesty International, Greenpeace Nordic, OceanKAN, NCCDH, and HOST (a civil-society infrastructure provider serving 90+ movements). Revenue figures and funding rounds are not publicly disclosed, and the organization has no venture capital or public-market investment structure.
Acter firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Acter
- Legal name
- The Acter Association
- Website
- https://acter.global
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Acter is a Danish non-profit association building a mobile-first, end-to-end encrypted organizing app on the Matrix protocol for grassroots activists and civil-society movements, distributed free via app stores and supported through NGO partnerships.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Acter industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Secure Collaboration Software
- NAICS
- Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Email, Calendar & Scheduling (BPAMAMAC)
Keywords
Where Acter is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Aarhus
- HQ country
- Denmark
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Acter business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Freemium + Subscription: Free-forever version for individual activists and small groups, with a more advanced subscription version for larger groups requiring additional features and support
- NGO Partnership Revenue: Partnering with NGOs who pay for decentralized service hosting and support Acter's mission
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free tier for individual activists and small groups |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Acter product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Acter develops and distributes the Acter App, a mobile-first secure organizing platform for activists and grassroots movements. The app delivers end-to-end-encrypted chat built on the decentralized Matrix protocol (no phone number required), organized nested spaces, task and task-list management, an in-app event calendar, a shared pin-wall for resources, and push-notification boost feeds. It is offered as a free-forever product for individuals and small groups with a planned subscription tier for larger groups.
Product overview
Acter is a single unified product: the Acter App (also referred to as Acter). It is a secure, mobile-first organizing platform designed specifically for activists and social movements. The app provides a comprehensive suite of organizing tools including end-to-end encrypted chat (built on the decentralized Matrix protocol), task and task-list management, event calendars, nested spaces for organizing structure, pins for important content, and boost feeds for urgent announcements. The platform emphasizes privacy-first design with limited metadata collection and operates as a non-profit association governed by Danish law.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Acter App Mobile-first, end-to-end-encrypted organizing application for activists and grassroots movements, built on the decentralized Matrix protocol and offered free via app stores, with no phone number registration required.
Companies that use Acter
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Acter technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature8 records
Acter partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- HOSTcoreCivil society infrastructure provider trusted by over 90+ activists and movements worldwide. HOST provides full project support including admin, finance, HR, legal and safeguarding services through their Project Hosting offerings. Together with Acter, they are building secure infrastructure that movements need to thrive, even in high-risk environments.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Acter competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Threema: Privacy-oriented messenger based in Switzerland that does not require phone-number registration, competing for users who prioritize anonymity and data minimization.
- Wire: End-to-end encrypted team collaboration platform with messaging, file sharing, and conferencing, often used by NGOs and enterprises with strict privacy requirements.
- Tutanota: End-to-end encrypted email and calendar service with strong privacy positioning, serving civil society and privacy-conscious users with no phone-number requirement.
- Briar: Open-source messenger designed specifically for activists, journalists, and human-rights defenders operating under surveillance or internet shutdowns. Closest peer in user-threat-model alignment.
- Signal: End-to-end encrypted messenger widely adopted by activists, journalists, and civil society. Overlaps with Acter on the secure-communication core need for at-risk users.
- Element: The reference commercial client built on the same Matrix protocol that Acter uses, offering secure messaging, rooms, and bridging. Directly competes in the privacy-first communication space and shares the underlying protocol stack.
- Session: Decentralized, privacy-focused messenger built on an onion-routed network with no phone-number requirement. Competes for the same privacy-conscious, phone-number-averse activist persona.
Broad incumbents
- Telegram: Mass-market messenger with optional E2EE secret chats and large groups/channels, widely used by activist movements for coordination despite weaker default security than Acter's stack.
- Proton (ProtonMail/Proton Drive): Broader privacy suite (mail, drive, VPN, calendar) used heavily by activists and journalists. Overlaps on encrypted communication and is expanding into adjacent collaboration features.
Others
- Keybase: End-to-end encrypted communication and identity-verification tool historically popular with the open-source and activist communities, now owned by Zoom.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Acter social profiles
Digital presenceActer financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Acter leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Acter funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Acter M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Acter
What does Acter do?
Acter develops and distributes the Acter App, a mobile-first secure organizing platform for activists and grassroots movements. The app delivers end-to-end-encrypted chat built on the decentralized Matrix protocol (no phone number required), organized nested spaces, task and task-list management, an in-app event calendar, a shared pin-wall for resources, and push-notification boost feeds. It is offered as a free-forever product for individuals and small groups with a planned subscription tier for larger groups.
Is Acter a public or private company?
Acter is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Acter founded?
Acter was founded in 2019. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Acter based?
Acter is headquartered in Aarhus, Denmark, in the Europe region.
How does Acter make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Freemium + Subscription is the primary driver. The others are NGO Partnership Revenue.
Who are Acter's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Threema, Wire, Tutanota, Briar, Signal, Element and Session. Broad incumbents are Telegram and Proton (ProtonMail/Proton Drive). Keybase is listed as an others.
Does Acter have an API?
No public API is recorded for Acter.
What industry is Acter in?
Acter's product category is Secure Collaboration Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMAMAC, Email, Calendar & Scheduling. Its NAICS code is 8133 and its SIC code is 7372.