The messaging app BitChat, created by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey (now CEO of X), enables users to send encrypted conversations without the need for an internet connection.
In an article on X on Sunday, Dorsey unveiled the app, which is still in its infancy.
He explained that the project was a personal investigation into decentralized communication, message encryption, and Bluetooth mesh networking.
He added, “I learned about Bluetooth mesh networks, relays, store and forward models, message encryption models, and a few other things over the course of our weekend project.”
iOS users may now access a beta version of the app through TestFlight, and GitHub has released the white paper and source code.
WORKINGS
The store-and-forward architecture of BitChat, as described in the documentation Dorsey shared, relays messages from one Bluetooth-enabled device to another until they are received by the designated receiver.
According to the document, the app utilizes the noise protocol framework (NPF) for authentication and Curve25519 public keys to protect messages. It also supports end-to-end encryption.
Its simple UI was influenced by internet relay chat (IRC), a text-based system used in the early days of the internet.
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Dorsey has a long history of being interested in decentralized technology, which BitChat supports.
Prior to stepping down from the board of Bluesky in May 2024, the American businessman had also supported the decentralized social media platform.
With his firm, Block, Inc. (previously Square), he has concentrated on digital payments and Bitcoin infrastructure after resigning as CEO of Twitter in 2021.
