Global Ecosystem & Movement Building Platform Cooperatives

From Isolated Platform Co-ops to a United Digital Movement

Cooperatives have always been a quiet force for economic justice — but in the digital age, silence doesn’t scale.

The tech economy is now dominated by platform monopolies, extractive data models, and AI-powered precarity. These problems are global — and so must be the solutions.

That’s why Co-opLeap is building a cross-border, cross-sector ecosystem of platform co-ops and allies working to shift the future of work, ownership, and value creation.

We are weaving together a new digital commons — one built not for unicorns, but for resilient, federated, ethical infrastructure that belongs to the people.

Why We’re Building a Global Ecosystem

What We're Building Together

We’re not just supporting individual startups. We’re catalyzing a global movement for platform democracy.

Platform Co-op Founders & Teams

Unions, Guilds, and Worker Councils

Impact Investors, Credit Unions & Philanthropy

Tech-for-Good Companies & Open Source Communities

Universities, Researchers, and Think Tanks

Policy Makers & Civil Society Organizations

Together, we are creating a mutualist alternative to extractive platform capitalism.

  • Co-op-to-Co-op Infrastructure & Collaborations

    We help platform co-ops partner with each other to share technology, resources, members, and knowledge. Examples:

    • Revenue-sharing between adjacent co-ops
    • Cross-promoted service packages
    • Federated tech backends and co-maintained AI agents
    • Shared onboarding tools and playbooks

  • Events, Summits & Community Forums

    We host global and regional events to build community and power:

    • 🧭 Virtual meetups & co-creation labs
    • 📣 Global Platform Co-op Summit (coming soon)
    • 🎙️ Twitter/X Spaces & Webinars
    • 🎨 Co-design workshops for tools and governance
    • 🧵 Slack & Circle communities for peer support

  • Open Knowledge Library & Toolkits

    We curate and share a growing collection of:

    • 📘 Cooperative legal templates (UK, EU, Global South)
    • 🧩 Open-source platform design stacks
    • 🧠 AI co-ownership and ethics models
    • 🗂️ Governance frameworks, pitch decks, and onboarding flows
    • 📊 Case studies of thriving platform co-ops

    All materials are free and remixable under Creative Commons.

  • Ecosystem Mapping & Partner Directory

    We're creating a living atlas of platform co-ops around the world, categorized by:

    • Sector (care, education, transport, freelancing, creative, etc.)
    • Ownership model (worker-owned, user-owned, hybrid)
    • Region & language
    • Tech stack used (web2, AI, web3, federated, etc.)

  • Alliance & Movement Partnerships

    We’re proud to collaborate with like-minded networks and orgs, including:

    • 🌐 Platform Co-operativism Consortium (PCC)
    • 🧑‍🔧 Freelancers’ Unions and Guilds in multiple regions
    • 🧠 Cooperative AI Labs
    • 🎓 Cooperative universities and public research centers
    • 🏛️ International Labour Organization (ILO) & social economy forums

What You Can Access Through Our Network

Why a Movement — Not Just a Market

Co-opLeap believes that to truly challenge Big Tech and reclaim the promise of digital tools, we need more than good startups — we need a coordinated global effort, grounded in:

  • Shared values of mutualism and solidarity
  • Ethical tech and data sovereignty
  • Local empowerment and global visibility
  • Network effects driven by cooperation — not competition

  • Co-op Legal Reform

    • Easy registration pathways for digital cooperatives
    • Support for multi-stakeholder and hybrid DAO-coop models

  • Public Co-op Funding

    • Dedicated co-op startup grants and social investment
    • Municipal bonds for platform infrastructure

  • AI, Data & Platform Regulation

    • Co-op ownership of AI systems
    • Transparent algorithms in worker platforms
    • Data trust structures with democratic oversight

  • Urban Policy & Procurement

    Platform co-ops in city-level mobility, care, delivery, and education
    Digital inclusion policies aligned with cooperative principles

  • International Law & Global South Equity

    • Support for co-op-friendly development funding
    • Legal export of UK/EU best practices to Africa, Asia, and Latin America

Our Policy Priorities for 2025–2026

How You Can Get Involved

We are building a policy & advocacy coalition to make platform co-ops the norm, not the niche.

  • Are you a policymaker or legislator?

    Let’s brief your office and co-develop national strategy.

  • Are you a co-op, union, or NGO?

    Join our open policy working groups and campaigns.

  • Are you a researcher or legal expert?

    Contribute to our policy lab or collaborate on whitepapers.

  • Are you a funder or foundation?

    Support systemic change through advocacy grants.

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