Open-source Ayoa alternatives

AFFiNE is an open-source workspace that combines writing, drawing and planning in a single app. Documents, an edgeless whiteboard and table views share the same blocks, so you can place rich text, sticky notes, embedded web pages, database views, linked pages, shapes and even slides anywhere on one canvas. It is presented as an alternative to Notion and Miro.

The project stresses local-first storage, meaning your data lives on your own device first, together with real-time collaboration. A multimodal AI assistant helps write reports, turn outlines into slides, summarize articles into mind maps and organize tasks. Under the hood it uses CRDTs for syncing and is built mostly in TypeScript and Rust, with Electron for the desktop app. It also supports Markdown, wiki and knowledge-base use, and presentations.

AFFiNE's license is listed as 'Other' on GitHub, so review it before commercial use. There is a live demo and documentation on the project site, a hosted version is available, and the app can also be self-hosted.

Drawnix is a free, open-source whiteboard that brings mind maps, flowcharts and freehand drawing together in a single workspace. Instead of switching between separate diagramming apps, you can sketch ideas, structure them into diagrams and annotate everything on one infinite canvas that you can zoom and scroll freely.

The editor supports inserting images, undo and redo, copy and paste, light and dark themes, and a layout that adapts to mobile devices. Mermaid syntax can be converted into flowcharts and Markdown text into mind maps, while work is saved automatically in the browser and can be exported as PNG images or as .drawnix JSON files for later reuse.

Drawnix is released under the MIT licence and is built on Plait, an open-source drawing framework from the PingCode team, using a plugin architecture that can work with different UI frameworks. The hosted app at drawnix.com is a minimal version, and the repository includes Docker instructions for people who prefer to run their own copy.

Freeplane is a free and open-source application that supports thinking, sharing information and getting things done, at work, at school and at home. It provides tools for mind mapping, also called concept mapping or information mapping, and for navigating the information you have mapped. It is also used for knowledge management and light project management.

The README presents it as an alternative to commercial mind mapping software such as Xmind and MindMeister, aimed at more demanding users. Capabilities hinted at by the repository topics include Groovy scripting, Markdown and LaTeX support, an outliner view, presentation features and writing aids. It is built in Java on OSGi with a Swing interface, so it runs on any operating system with a current Java installation, and it can run from removable storage such as a USB drive.

Freeplane is licensed under GPL-2.0 and runs locally on your computer, so there is no server or hosted version. It suits students, researchers, writers and teams that want a capable offline mind mapping tool.