Signal Foundation Explained

Signal Foundation
Full Name:Signal Technology Foundation
Type:501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
Tax Id:82-4506840[1]
Founded Date:[2]
Predecessor:Open Whisper Systems
Headquarters:650 Castro Street, Suite 120-223[3]
Location:Mountain View, CA
Area Served:Global
Focus:Open-source privacy technology
Revenue:$12,765,380
Revenue Year:2021
Expenses:$33,117,092
Expenses Year:2021
Staff:36[4]
Staff Year:2020
Subsid:Signal Messenger LLC.

The Signal Technology Foundation, commonly known as the Signal Foundation,[1] [3] is an American non-profit organization founded in 2018 by Moxie Marlinspike and Brian Acton. Its mission is to "protect free expression and enable secure global communication through open source privacy technology."[5] Its subsidiary, Signal Messenger LLC, is responsible for the development of the Signal messaging app and the Signal Protocol.

History

On February 21, 2018, Moxie Marlinspike and WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton announced the formation of the Signal Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.[6] The foundation was started with an initial $50 million loan from Acton, who had left WhatsApp's parent company, Facebook, in September 2017.[7] The Freedom of the Press Foundation had previously served as the Signal project's fiscal sponsor and continued to accept donations on behalf of the project while the foundation's non-profit status was pending. By the end of 2018, the loan had increased to $105,000,400, which is due to be repaid on February 28, 2068. The loan is unsecured and at 0% interest.[8]

Senior leadership

Signal Foundation has been led by a Chairman, which is separate from the leadership roles of Signal Messenger.

List of chairmen

  1. Brian Acton (2018–present)

People

As of June 2023, the Signal Foundation board of directors has five members:[9]

Emeritus members:

Signal Messenger LLC

Signal Messenger
Formation:[11]
Type:Limited liability company
Vat Id:(for European organizations) -->
Products:Signal, Signal Protocol
Owners:-->
Parent Organization:Signal Technology Foundation
Affiliations:Freedom of the Press Foundation[12]

Signal Messenger LLC was founded simultaneously with the Signal Technology Foundation and operates as its subsidiary. It is responsible for the development of the Signal messaging app[13] and the Signal Protocol. Moxie Marlinspike served as Signal Messenger's first CEO[14] until stepping down on January 10, 2022. Brian Acton volunteered to serve as interim CEO while the organization searched for a new CEO.[15] In June 2023, Signal announced that Acton would be staying on as CEO following the search.[16]

Senior leadership

Along with the Chairman of the Signal Foundation, Signal Messenger has been traditionally led by a CEO. This was until September 2022, when a new role of President was created, which is dedicated to more core lanes of strategy.[17]

List of CEOs

  1. Moxie Marlinspike (2018–2022)
  2. Brian Acton (2022–present)

List of presidents

  1. Meredith Whittaker (2022–present)[18]

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Signal Technology Foundation . Nonprofit Explorer . 9 May 2013 . Pro Publica Inc. . 5 July 2022.
  2. Web site: Signal Technology Foundation . OpenCorporates . Delaware Department of State: Division of Corporations . 13 February 2019 . 15 July 2018.
  3. Web site: Statement of Information . businesssearch.sos.ca.gov . California Secretary of State . PDF . 13 February 2019 . 28 August 2018.
  4. Wiener . Anna . Taking Back Our Privacy . . 2020-10-19 . en-us . 2020-10-25 . dmy-all .
  5. Web site: Signal Foundation. signalfoundation.org. 2023-10-25 . dmy-all.
  6. Web site: Marlinspike. Moxie. Acton. Brian. Signal Foundation. Signal.org. 21 February 2018. 21 February 2018.
  7. Greenberg. Andy. WhatsApp Co-Founder Puts $50M Into Signal To Supercharge Encrypted Messaging. Wired. Condé Nast. 21 February 2018. 21 February 2018.
  8. Web site: Signal Technology Foundation - Form 990 for period ending December 2018 . Nonprofit Explorer . ProPublica . 15 February 2020.
  9. Signal . signalapp . 1669374293203976195 . 15 June 2023 . Announcement! Signal is refreshing our board as we grow. We’re delighted to welcome @krmaher, @ambaonadventure, and @jaysullivan as Signal’s new Directors. Learn more here: . 21 June 2023 . https://twitter.com/signalapp/status/1669374293203976195 .
  10. Web site: A Message from Signal's New President . 2022-09-06 . Signal Messenger . en.
  11. Web site: Signal Messenger, LLC . OpenCorporates . Delaware Department of State: Division of Corporations . 13 February 2019 . 15 July 2018 . 14 February 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190214061516/https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_de/6703101 . live .
  12. Web site: Timm. Trevor. Freedom of the Press Foundation's new look, and our plans to protect press freedom for 2017. Freedom of the Press Foundation. 25 January 2017. 8 December 2016. 2 February 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170202042832/https://freedom.press/news/freedom-press-foundations-new-look-and-our-plans-protect-press-freedom-2017/. live.
  13. Web site: Signal Terms & Privacy Policy . signal.org . Signal Messenger LLC. . 21 January 2021 . 25 May 2018.
  14. Web site: Statement of Information . businesssearch.sos.ca.gov . California Secretary of State . 13 February 2019 . PDF . 3 October 2018 . 14 February 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190214061645/https://businesssearch.sos.ca.gov/Document/RetrievePDF?Id=201808710334-24941282 . live .
  15. Web site: Marlinspike . Moxie . New year, new CEO . signal.org . Signal Messenger . 10 January 2022 . 10 January 2022.
  16. Signal . signalapp . 1669374295720570881 . 15 June 2023 . Meredith and Brian will remain on the Board for an interim period, before stepping off to focus on their leadership duties–Meredith as Signal’s President, and Brian staying on as Signal’s CEO, following a search.. 21 June 2023 . https://twitter.com/signalapp/status/1669374295720570881 .
  17. Web site: 18 October 2022 . Why Signal won't compromise on encryption, with president Meredith Whittaker . The Verge.
  18. Web site: 8 September 2022 . A Message from Signal's New President . Signal.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Signal Foundation".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.