Our Mission
Inkwell exists to give people a place to write, think, and connect — without an algorithm deciding what matters, without ads harvesting their attention, and without a corporation owning their words.
Version 1.0 · February 24, 2026
Inkwell is a federated social journaling platform — a place built for writing: journal entries, long thoughts, personal updates, and creative expression. Where the people you care about can actually read what you write.
Built on ActivityPub — the same open standard that powers Mastodon and a growing ecosystem of independent platforms — your content belongs to you, not to us. No single company, including ours, can own or control your presence on it.
These are the principles that guide every decision we make — from what we build to how we run the business.
We are building in direct response to what social media became: platforms optimized for engagement over meaning, for outrage over connection. People deserve tools that serve them rather than exploit them.
We make money when users find enough value to pay for it. Not by harvesting data, selling attention, or designing systems to create dependence. That alignment is the foundation of everything we build.
We build on ActivityPub because users should never be trapped. If Inkwell ever fails to serve you, you can leave and take your identity and connections with you. Federation is a core architectural commitment, not a roadmap item.
The people who show up first matter most. Early users define the culture, surface problems, and point toward what Inkwell should become. Feedback is a conversation, not a support ticket.
Inkwell operates on a freemium subscription model. The core platform — writing, reading, following, connecting — is free. Inkwell Plus at $5/month unlocks custom themes, HTML/CSS, the supporter stamp, and more.
Subscriptions align our success with user value. When you pay for Plus, it's because Inkwell is worth it — not because we engineered an addiction or locked away features you need to function.
Where revenue goes
Reinvesting in the platform — infrastructure, features, stability, and the team that makes it possible.
Donating a meaningful portion of profits to sustainable technology, equality and internet access, and open source infrastructure.
Being transparent about how money flows through the business, so the community can hold us accountable.
These are not aspirations. They are constraints we place on ourselves, stated publicly so our community can hold us to them.
Sell user data or share it with advertisers
Introduce algorithmic feeds designed to maximize engagement at the cost of wellbeing
Run ads on the platform
Deliberately cripple the free tier to force paid upgrades
Compromise open federation in exchange for growth or revenue
Prioritize profit in ways that contradict our stated values
Your words belong to you. We will never claim ownership over your content.
Your data is not a product. We collect only what we need to operate the platform.
You can leave at any time. Open federation means your identity travels with you.
We will tell you the truth. When we make mistakes, we will say so. When something changes, we will explain why.
We build with you, not just for you. The community shapes the roadmap.
Inkwell is an attempt to prove that a social platform can be good for people and financially sustainable at the same time. We think that is worth building.
This document is a living reference. It will be updated as the platform and business evolve.