Slack vs. Discord: A Case Study

2 products that kinda have the same functionality. But very different:

Different Missions: Slack is for work and Discord is for play. One about productive communication another about connection

Different Company Strategies: Slack's strategy focuses on improving workplace productivity while Discord focuses on building communities, with a focus on gaming.

But, once we get into the product, things begin to look more similar. The user experience for both products is surprisingly alike. However even when both apps have a similar functionality, the reasoning is different. And subtle differences matter.