The open-source alternative to WRITER

Looking for something like WRITER, but open source and free to start? Alfera is the AI coworker your whole team shares: a company brain that syncs your apps, connections shared per person or per team, permissions on every action, and Slack, WhatsApp and email. Self-host it in one click, or start on Alfera Cloud.

In one line: Alfera is open source with a company brain, vs a closed enterprise AI agent platform.

Enterprise AI agent platformAlfera on GitHub
Hire your coworkerBook a demo
WRITEREnterprise AI agent platformOpen source, or Alfera Cloud
What it isEnterprise AI platform where WRITER Agent runs playbooks across connected tools, aimed at marketing and revenue teams.The AI coworker your whole team shares, with a company brain that syncs your apps. Open source.
Open sourceNoYes, AGPL-3.0
Self-hostNot publishedYes: one click on DigitalOcean or AWS, or one command on any server
PriceStarter: per-seat, fixed credits, up to 5 users, 14-day free trial, price not listed. Enterprise: contact salesFree to start: open source to self-host, and Alfera Cloud starts with $10 of free AI usage
Where it worksWeb app, Slack, Microsoft TeamsSlack, WhatsApp, email from its own address, the web app, a Mac app, the API and MCP
Team usePlaybooks are shared with teammates (view only); admins curate a team library; roles decide who can create or only use playbooks.Multiplayer: one coworker for the whole team. It knows who is asking, and each connection is shared with everyone, one project, or one person
PermissionsStep approvals pause a playbook for a named reviewer. Connectors: read vs read/write per tool action, folder scoping, audit log.Allow, ask first, or never, per connection and per action. Approvals in Slack, email or the app, and every action logged
Starts on its ownSchedules (minutes to monthly) and app events: Gmail, Slack, Google Calendar, Google Drive, Gong, SharePoint.On a schedule, from a webhook, or on 600+ app events
ModelsPalmyra X6 (default), X5, X4. AWS Bedrock and OpenRouter models (e.g. Claude, Llama) with credentials, plus a 10% WRITER fee.230+ models: Claude, GPT, Gemini, open models, your ChatGPT plan, or your own

Where WRITER is the better choice

Global 2000 enterprises whose marketing and revenue teams want to delegate on-brand work to AI agents.

  • Own Palmyra model family, with Palmyra X6 built for agentic work and MCP tool use
  • Per-connector governance: separate instances per team, read vs read/write per tool action, folder-level scoping
  • Brand voice profiles and Skills keep output on-brand; SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001/27701/42001 and HIPAA listed

Everything Alfera does

  • A company brain that syncs your apps. Connect Google Drive, Notion, Slack and the rest. Documents sync on their own, keep every version, and every answer draws on them.
  • One coworker for the whole team. It knows who is asking. Many people, many tasks at once, each with their own chats and connections, and shared chats when you want.
  • 3,000+ app connections, shared the way you choose. Each connection is open to everyone, one project, or one person. A personal mailbox stays personal; the support inbox is the team’s.
  • Permissions on every action. Allow, ask first, or never, per connection and per action. Approvals land in Slack, email or the app, and every action is logged.
  • Where your team already is. Slack, WhatsApp, email from its own address, the web app, a Mac app, and your own code through the API and MCP.
  • It starts work by itself. On a schedule, from a webhook, or on 600+ app events in Gmail, HubSpot, Stripe and more.
  • Its own computer. Every chat runs in a sandbox with a terminal and a browser, and its files stay from one chat to the next.
  • Any model. 230+ models: Claude, GPT, Gemini, open models, your ChatGPT plan, or a model you run yourself.
  • Open source, and free to start. AGPL-3.0. Self-host it in one click on DigitalOcean or AWS, or start on Alfera Cloud with $10 of free AI usage.

WRITER and Alfera

Alfera. Alfera is the AI coworker your whole team shares. It has a company brain that syncs your apps, 3,000+ app connections shared per person or per team, permissions on every action, and it works in Slack, WhatsApp, email and the web app. It starts work by itself, runs on any model, and it is open source: self-host it in one click or start free on Alfera Cloud. WRITER is not open source.

Sources

Facts about WRITER come from its own pages, read on 16 October 2026. Something out of date? Write to hello@alfera.ai and we will fix it.