In addition to my own analysis of element code, I'm also makes a research of sosial and technical resources for meaning about comparison of element.io (riot.im) with other group chat platforms
There a list of resources, which have a ready to use compare charts: Sourceforge, Stackshare, Slashdot, Slant
Also can be easy founded interesting posts of that theme on Medium, Reddit, Opensource
In the internet present a lot of publications with very different means and opinions, but from all properties of any platform, we can select a main features, which related to any platform and play as key characteristics
Most platforms use SSL/TLS for data protection and do not use E2EE principles for that.
However, centralised security allow that organization leverage user access to data and services, because all interactions should be signed by centralized controlled CA. Other cons of that type of security, is compromized user local trusted CA database and in generaly necessary to trust that authority centers in cases if some from that will be compromized itself.
element security proc:
In this sense, element have a great advantage over such platforms, because provide to the users a way for establish secured channels, independent from central authority, but this nuanse is a medal with two sides: central authoryty needed for ultimative MITM prevention and currently is once known way for two generals problem solution.
element security cons:
Device verification, used in element, is a partialy method for prevent very pure permanent MITM attack, and using double ratched keys derivation is good principle for prevent MITM intrusion in middle of data exchange process, but all that tools unefficient versus permanent AI powered MITM, which able to deep analyse intercepted traffic on a fly, include media data recognition, machine learning and complex media generation (deep fake algorithms).
how element security can be improved:
For improve element security I strongly recommend to distribute clients with predefined CA signatures and add public keys and shared keys signing for additionally ensure end-to-end trust. Also, for future security versus quantum computation powered MITM, allready have a sense to change shared secret exchange algorithm from ECDH to SIDH
Main difference between opensource and proprietary code license is in dev team responsibility and contribution style in a project development. Often proprietary code teams have more responsibility, in comparison to opensource, because all support and integration processes often are paid, or depend on dev team access to the clients data. Closed code have only one advantage over open - keeping a know-how's in a secret, which can give to the company technical advantages only if that technology really have no alternatives.
In most cases, making a code open, and lisensin it as free software, allow teams lagging behind the technical leader, teams lagging behind the technical leader, quickly attract a community of enthusiasts to the development, if the project is interesting enough in itself, and if it is also monetized, or when using the project code in many other projects (libraries, modules, scripts, etc.), additional motivation appears, helping not only to attract many interested humans, but also to get high-level professionals into contributors.
Another difference, that in propietary model, cross-platform project expansion supplyed by employees of some company, which depend on grow often hight paided staff count, but in opensource model, expansion can be maded and by core team, and by some other developers, or even companies, which interested in additional platforms support.
element model proc:
It is opensource and available for absolutely free usage - that allows element grows quickly and cover many platforms, thanks to the work of many independent teams, at the same time, the monetization model allows them to create additional motivation for project participants
element model cons:
No cons - all cool
Architecture of any droup chat platforms, usually assumes the presence of such functional as privat chats, group chats, ability to create dedicated multirooms space for come project, or orfanization, or just a people group with common interests and accorfing to that interests propose variouse integrations with third side online services for different purpose, like a games, project management, collaboration tools, internationalization, financial instruments and so on. This is obliges a platforms to have a very complex architecture, with back end, powered by different databases with flexible unordinal data scheme, supporting a lot of side API's and very flexible extansible front end.
element model proc:
Main element architecture preferrencies is distributed synapse nodes network behind the scene, which makes whole ecosystem very resilent and diversified, Also a services specialization principle, in a base of division on main nodes, identify services and bridges, make system more simple and provide easy support and system enhancement. Opensource integrations API open a ways for riachment additional functionality ecosystem, but...
element model cons:
Element integrations don't use integration managers and API aggregators, relying only on matrix developed code and this is limit interoperability with third side solutions.
how element integrations can be improved:
In addition to own realisation of side services API, good idea will be integrate with API aggregators, which already containse ready to use implementations of high count of variouse services and provide unified API to interact with they are
Don't looking on a fact, that group chats very usable for many specialized purposes, usually leaders of market positioning self products as oriented on some target audience. For example Slack sade that this is oriented on a business collaboration, discord is mostly oriented on gamers coversation and so on, but and slack and discord very often used for organize productive IT teams collaboration. This is depend on business model of group chat and defines some limitations of free version in comparizon to enterprize paid service, which calculated in cost per user. Also that orientation define a mostly used side services for integrate with, accordingly slack mostly integrates with collaborative tools, like project management, version control systems, time trackings and so on, and discord point most attention on integrations with streaming services, like youtube, twich, variouse leaderboards, etc.
element model proc:
Having a decentralized back end infrastructure and advanced E2EE capabilities, element attracts a users, for which important a confidense, privacy and censorship resistant, so, independent on working shpere of that users, orientation on secured conversation makes a competitive advantage for it. Also element have no some concreate defined strategy for some dedicated specifical segment and positioned as universal solution, which is much closest to truth, because on a practice, any group chat used for many different purposes
element model cons:
On the other hand, it is easier to promote a product aimed at a narrow audience than a wide one. This is a controversial issue that requires a detailed comparative marketing research
In general all group chat solutions have a very similar interface, and any user, which have an experience with one platform can easy start using other. Main interface elements are chat window (room), contacts list, chats list, list of virtual servers, settings and search tools and often they are even distributed over platform workspace very similar. Other user experiece related nuances is a how reach message formatting can be used in conversation, files and media exchange, streaming and realtime media conversations, and contacts exchange. All that functional can be extended using variouse integrations. All that makes a group chats UI's very complex and every platform straight must have operative suppord and should be well docummented.
element model proc:
Element have a typical intuitive interface, which can be easily mastered by the user using the poke method. Element UI have a translations on many languges. In the rooms search users can easy found variouse support chats, from basic help oriented to advanced development support and this is possible because element have strong big community and often even help provided by enthusiasts in additional to element dev team.
element model cons:
It is strange, but element have not so good docummentation. So, basic usage, protocol, API's are well docummented, but for example integrations have not so good documentation and instead UI, documentations have significant less translations.