SAN FRANCISCO (Chatnewstv.com) — Jack Dorsey, the founder of Twitter and CEO of Block Inc., has unveiled a new peer-to-peer messaging platform designed to work without internet access or centralized servers — a bold bid to challenge WhatsApp, Telegram and other major apps.
“We finally launched the beta for Bitchat,” Dorsey wrote in a July 6 post on X, the social media platform he co-founded. “It’s a personal experiment in Bluetooth mesh, store-and-forward, encryption and decentralization.”
The app, currently available on TestFlight, operates on Bluetooth mesh networks and does not require phone numbers, emails, or usernames to connect. Messages pass between nearby devices in encrypted form and vanish by default, leaving no trace on any centralized infrastructure, Dorsey said.
According to Dorsey, Bitchat allows encrypted, ephemeral messaging across clusters of devices. “As people move around, their phones form local Bluetooth clusters, relaying messages even without internet or mobile signal,” he said. Bridge devices connect overlapping groups, expanding the mesh.
The decentralized design of Bitchat is part of Dorsey’s broader campaign to disrupt centralised digital services — from finance to communication — with privacy-preserving alternatives. Messages are stored only on individual devices and never touch a central server, aligning with his push for censorship-resistant technologies.
“Bitchat is meant to keep working even during internet blackouts, surveillance or shutdowns,” he said.
The app also integrates Bitcoin’s Lightning Network to support fast, low-cost payments within chats. Optional group chats, called “rooms,” can be protected by passwords and identified using hashtags.
Experts say Bitchat’s architecture makes it particularly appealing in regions experiencing censorship or connectivity issues. A future version will include Wi-Fi Direct to boost message speed and range, according to Dorsey.
The launch comes as Elon Musk prepares to roll out his own messaging platform, xChat, to compete with WhatsApp. Musk claims xChat will support end-to-end encryption, disappearing messages, and cross-platform audio and video calls — all backed by the Rust programming language and Bitcoin-style cryptography.
“xChat is the future of secure communication,” Musk said in a recent post.
Both tech billionaires appear to be escalating efforts to reimagine online communication around privacy, decentralization, and independence from traditional infrastructure.
“This is a renaissance moment for secure, resilient messaging,” said one technology analyst. “And the stakes couldn’t be higher.”
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