Etherpad is an open-source real-time collaborative text editor. It allows multiple users to edit documents simultaneously with instant synchronization. Etherpad is one of the pioneers of real-time collaborative editing.
2009 – Original Etherpad Created
Etherpad was originally created by AppJet, a startup founded by Romain Huet, Johnny Leuzinger, and Michael Mahemoff. It was one of the first real-time collaborative editors available on the web.
2011 – Google Acquires AppJet
Google acquired AppJet and open-sourced Etherpad as “Etherpad Lite”. The original Etherpad codebase was rewritten from scratch using Node.js, making it much faster and easier to deploy.
2011 – Apache Foundation
Etherpad became an Apache Foundation project, ensuring its long-term maintenance and community development.
2012-2015 – Community Development
The community developed numerous plugins, translations, and improvements. Etherpad gained popularity for meeting notes, collaborative writing, and educational use.
2016-2020 – Modernization
The codebase was modernized with improved real-time synchronization, better plugin architecture, and enhanced security features.
2022 – TypeScript Migration
Etherpad began migrating its codebase to TypeScript for better maintainability and type safety.
2024 – Version 2.x
Major version 2 brought significant improvements to the user interface, performance, and plugin ecosystem.
2026 – Current Version 2.6.1
Released in January 2026, the current version includes 290+ plugins, support for 105 languages, and continued improvements to real-time collaboration.
| Era | Key Technology |
|---|---|
| 2009-2011 | Original Python/JavaScript implementation |
| 2011-2015 | Node.js rewrite (Etherpad Lite) |
| 2016-2020 | Plugin ecosystem growth |
| 2021-2026 | TypeScript migration, modern UI |