That doesn't help much. Maybe if your friend group is around 40+ years old, and has been on the net since the 90s. But it's not a comparable product. Matrix with element is the closest foss alternative, but even then it has clunky ux, and spaces are a subpar replacement to discord servers.

I wish that wasn't the case but it is. The world needs a foss discord/slack option with an open protocol like matrix. If anyone knows of any projects in progress please let me know!