Video conferencing shouldn’t feel like a data collection exercise for Google Gemini, so let’s get into the alternatives 😁
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kMeet: Great free option with unlimited call lengths. Runs on Jitsi technology with a nice user interface and features from Infomaniak.
The Details: Covered Infomaniak in De-Google Part 4: Email, Calendar, & Docs.
Features:
Do meeting attendees need to have an account to join? No, participants can join via a link
Collaboration: Screensharing, Whiteboard
Security: Meetings can be protected with a password, and you can choose your own level of encryption for meetings. Waiting Room option available.
Integration: Syncs with Infomaniak calendar. Record meetings and download directly to kDrive if you also use that service.
Customize kMeet with your company’s branding, though there is a fee after a free trial.
AI Policy: I’m pretty sure there’s no built-in AI features for kMeet specifically, but AI is incorporated into Infomaniak’s email & drive products.
Privacy: Your kMeet communications pass through their servers in Switzerland only, not the US.
Sustainability: Infomaniak has a lot of sustainability programs and commitments to reduce their environmental impact.
Cost: Free to use without time limits
Available On: Browser, Desktop (Mac, Windows, Linux), and Mobile (iOS for iPhone, iPad, Android)
UPDATE 8/17/26: Added in Proton Meet.
Proton Meet: Great option if you already have a Proton account or want something simple to use, as you don’t need an account to set up a meeting. If you need a free version without limits, kMeet might work better for you.
The Details: Covered Proton in De-Google Part 4: Email, Calendar, & Docs.
Features:
Do your meeting attendees need to have an account/etc to join the meeting? No, participants can join via a link
Collaboration: Screensharing
Security: End-to-end encrypted
Integration: Syncs with Proton calendar.
AI Policy: When I tested it I didn’t see any AI tools within Proton Meet, I do not believe they’re included. Though Proton does have other AI tools, including Lumo.
Privacy: Proton does not have ads, nor sells your data to third-parties. Meetings are end-to-end encrypted.
Sustainability: Nothing mentioned on their website.
Cost: Free to use for up to 1 hour calls with 50 participants, or get one of their paid plans for more options.
Available On: Browser, Desktop (Mac, Windows, Linux), and Mobile (iOS, Android)
Whereby: A decent European tech option for small business and organizations, with great collaboration features. For every day users, the free option is quite limited.
The Details: Based out of Norway and owned by Pexip, a publicly traded Norwegian company with Kjell Skappel as the largest shareholder. Whereby and Pexip both support diversity and neither company have a profile on OpenSecrets.
Features: Full list here.
Do meeting attendees need to have an account to join? No, participants can join via a link
Collaboration: Screensharing, Whiteboard, Breakout Groups
Security: Locked rooms available, End-to-end encryption available via small rooms (P2P)
Integration: Syncs with Google calendars.
Customize Whereby with your company’s branding
AI Policy: From an older blog post it looks like they had AI features in Beta, but I don’t see anything on their site today about AI features. They may not have rolled out AI features as a full product option.
Privacy: Whereby does not sell your personal information, and only shares your information with third-parties in order to provide their services (i.e. payment processors, etc).
Sustainability: Nothing noted on their site.
Cost: You can use it for free, but only for meetings less than 30 min. Their Pro plan is $10.99 a month and includes unlimited meetings, up to 100 attendees, and 3 room URLs, and they also have business options.
Available On: Browser only, though it works across mobile and desktop.
These work well if you’re setting up informal video calls between friends, small groups, etc. Because they require both parties to have the app/platform, they don’t fully replace Google Meet or Zoom’s functionality. For more information on similar options, check out my Discord Alternatives article.
Signal: I use Signal for some of my video calls, and I find it quite useful. It’s especially helpful for organizing while maintaining privacy. The one downside is that you can’t schedule calls or share meeting links.
The Details: Covered in Discord Alternatives.
Features:
Do meeting attendees need to have an account to join? Yes
Collaboration: Screensharing
Security: End-to-end encryption
Integration: None
AI Policy: No AI features built-in.
Privacy: Signal does not sell your information or share with third parties unless it is necessary to provide services like a verification code when you sign up, but any information shared is also bound by Signal’s privacy policy.
Sustainability: Nothing mentioned on their site.
Cost: Free
Available On: Desktop (Windows, Mac, Linux), iOS, Android
Element, running on Matrix: A lot of people love Matrix, but it can be technically challenging to setup. Element makes it easy with a nice user interface and mobile and desktop apps.
The Details: Element is a privately held company funded by venture capital and other investors. Two of the co-founders of Matrix, Matthew Hodgson and Amandine Le Pape, started Element and continue to operate as legal directors for the Matrix Foundation. Element has not spent any money on lobbying and does not have a public diversity policy. For more information on Matrix, check out Discord Alternatives.
Features:
Do meeting attendees need to have an account to join? Yes, they need to have a Matrix account.
Collaboration: Screensharing
Security: End-to-end encryption
Integration: None
AI Policy: No AI features built-in.
Privacy: Element does not sell your information with third-parties and only shares relevant personal information with third-parties to provide services. Since calls are end-to-end encrypted, Element does not have access to your call data.
Sustainability: Nothing mentioned on their website.
Cost: Free for personal use, or you can get an upgraded version for your business or organization.
Available On: Browser, Desktop (Mac, Windows, Linux), Mobile (iOS, Android, F-Droid)
Jitsi: Jitsi is open-source, but the code & features are primarily managed by 8×8 inc. 8×8 is publicly traded, with institutional investors as their largest shareholders. 8×8 supports diversity and inclusion with employee resource groups. Since 2023, they have spent $220K on lobbying on issues related to Universal Service Fund reform and federal preemption of regulation over VoIP services. The Universal Service Fund is an FCC program started in 1996 to subsidize phone & internet services in rural areas to ensure universal communication services. It seems like industry groups in general are in favor of continuing the USF as basically it’s a subsidy to corporations to provide services, though they may also be lobbying for specific reform measures that may benefit them. For federal preemption of regulation, it generally means they want the federal government’s rulings on VoIP services to prevail over conflicting state level ones. While that may sound good, it actually may hurt everyday people if specific states have regulations that are more beneficial to consumers versus companies.
My thoughts: I don’t like that 8×8 spent money on lobbying. I’m including them as questionable vs. not recommended because Jitsi itself is useful open-source technology, even if 8×8 isn’t the best.
Features:
Do your meeting attendees need to have an account/etc to join the meeting? No, participants can join via a link
Collaboration: Screensharing, can edit documents together live on Etherpad
Security: Meeting passwords. End-to-end & other encryption options available depending on your setup and client.
Integration: No major ones noted on their website.
If you setup Jigasi, you can include telephone dial-in options for your meeting.
AI Policy: No AI features.
Privacy: Jitsi and 8×8 do not sell your personal information, and only share with third-parties when needed to provide services.
Sustainability: No major sustainability projects.
Cost: Free
Available On: Mobile (iOS, Android, F-Droid), Slack extension
Zoom: Zoom has spent $1.135 million on lobbying since 2023 on multiple tech issues, including video conferencing software use across various agencies, directly appealing to the Trump administration, and regulations affecting the tech industry. Zoom is publicly traded with it’s founder Eric Yuan as the largest shareholder.
Beyond Zoom’s lobbying spend, there are serious security concerns. In March 2026, 404Media reported on the company WebinarTV scanning Zoom meetings, recording content, and using AI to turn them into monetized podcasts. This includes sensitive calls and information.
I also don’t recommend Brave. I covered them in De-Google Part 1: Search & Gemini alternatives, read more here. UPDATED 8/17/26: Added Brave.
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