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Saturday, July 12, 2025

Jack Dorsey Launches Bitchat: A Decentralized Messaging App


Jack Dorsey Launches Bitchat: A Decentralized Messaging App

Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter and CEO of Block, launched a new messaging app called Bitchat in July 2025. Described as a "weekend project," Bitchat is a decentralized, peer-to-peer messaging app that operates over Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) mesh networks, allowing users to communicate without internet, Wi-Fi, or cellular service.

๐Ÿ”ง Key Features & Functionality

  • Offline Communication: Bitchat enables direct device-to-device messaging within a range of up to 300 meters (984 feet), relaying messages through nearby devices in a BLE mesh network.

  • Messaging Capabilities: Supports private messages, group chats (called “rooms” with optional password protection), and mentions via @handles.

  • Privacy by Design: Messages are end-to-end encrypted, ephemeral by default (disappear after delivery), and stored only on-device.

  • No Centralized Data: No internet, servers, or data collection are involved.

Sources: CNBC | Hindustan Times | Times of India

๐Ÿ” Privacy and Security

  • No Accounts Needed: Users don’t need a phone number, email, or login.

  • Panic Mode: A triple-tap on the logo clears all local data instantly.

  • Security Concerns: The app has not undergone external security audits. Researchers have identified a potentially vulnerable authentication system and possible buffer overflow bug.

Sources: The Verge | TechCrunch

๐Ÿ›  Development and Availability

  • Built with AI: Developed using Goose, Block’s internal AI coding tool.

  • Beta Testing: Currently in beta on Apple’s TestFlight platform, which reached its 10,000-user limit shortly after launch.

  • Android Coming Soon: An Android version is in development.

  • Planned Features: Future updates may include Wi-Fi Direct support for better range and speed.

Sources: Business Insider | India Today

๐ŸŒ Use Cases

Bitchat is designed for situations with limited or blocked connectivity, including:

  • Protests and demonstrations

  • Music festivals or events

  • Disaster recovery zones

  • Remote or rural areas

Similar tools like Bridgefy and FireChat were used during the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests for offline, censorship-resistant messaging.

Sources: The Verge | India Today

๐Ÿงญ Broader Context

Dorsey’s latest project aligns with his longstanding interest in:

  • Decentralized social platforms (e.g., Bluesky)

  • Privacy-focused communication (e.g., Nostr support)

  • Censorship resistance

While Bitchat reinforces these values, its security claims remain unverified, and caution is advised—especially for use in sensitive or high-risk environments.

Sources: New Atlas | Sherwood News

๐Ÿ“„ Additional Resources

Liquid Computing: The Future of Human-Tech Symbiosis
Velocity Money: Crypto, Karma, and the End of Traditional Economics
The Next Decade of Biotech: Convergence, Innovation, and Transformation
Beyond Motion: How Robots Will Redefine The Art Of Movement
ChatGPT For Business: A Workbook
Becoming an AI-First Organization
Quantum Computing: Applications And Implications
Challenges In AI Safety
AI-Era Social Network: Reimagined for Truth, Trust & Transformation

Remote Work Productivity Hacks
How to Make Money with AI Tools
AI for Beginners

Liquid Computing: The Future of Human-Tech Symbiosis
Velocity Money: Crypto, Karma, and the End of Traditional Economics
The Next Decade of Biotech: Convergence, Innovation, and Transformation
Beyond Motion: How Robots Will Redefine The Art Of Movement
ChatGPT For Business: A Workbook
Becoming an AI-First Organization
Quantum Computing: Applications And Implications
Challenges In AI Safety
AI-Era Social Network: Reimagined for Truth, Trust & Transformation

Remote Work Productivity Hacks
How to Make Money with AI Tools
AI for Beginners


Jack Dorsey’s new app Bitchat—a Bluetooth mesh messenger that works entirely without Wi‑Fi, cellular service, or satellites—marks a striking pivot away from the modern trend of ubiquitous connectivity like StarLink satellite internet.

๐ŸŒ A Radical Move Away from “Internet Everywhere”

1. No central servers, no phone numbers, no satellite

  • Unlike platforms built on global connectivity (e.g., StarLink’s aim to blanket the globe), Bitchat relies on Bluetooth Low Energy mesh—mobile devices themselves become the infrastructure (The Verge).

  • No internet means no dependence on satellites, cell towers, or centralized datacenters. It's the opposite of today’s push for always-on, always-online paradigms.

2. Patient-zero resistance to censorship

  • Bitchat channels the ethos of underground networks—off-grid communication during protests, Blackouts, or authoritarian blockades—something StarLink can’t counter .

  • This tool is meant for pockets of connectivity, not global coverage.

3. Privacy and ephemerality at its core

  • Messages are end-to-end encrypted, vanish by default, and are never collected or stored on servers (Lifewire).

  • Contrast that with satellite‑powered platforms, which—despite encryption—still route data through centralized systems prone to surveillance or data retention.

Why This Is a Purposeful Reversal

Trend StarLink & Global Internet Dorsey’s Bitchat
Infrastructure Satellites, ground stations, global ISPs Bluetooth mesh: devices form the network
Centralization Data flows through centralized servers Peer-to-peer—no central authority
Coverage Global, reliable—dependency intended Local, ad-hoc—built for disconnection
Privacy Service provider access, metadata concerns Encrypted, ephemeral, no metadata collection

Bitchat is not about launching another piece of global infrastructure—it’s explicitly embracing fragmentation. It presents a bottom-up, privacy-focused alternative to the top-down, mass coverage model of modern internet expansion.

Some Caveats & Real-World Considerations

Bottom Line

Jack Dorsey’s Bitchat is a conscious departure from the modern ethos of “everyone connected everywhere” via satellites and fiber. It’s a niche—but potent—decentralized tool for resilient, private, short-range communication, especially relevant when the global Internet is unavailable or censored.

In an age of omnipresent connectivity (like StarLink’s), Dorsey has paradoxically gone in the opposite direction—toward localized, ephemeral, user-controlled networks that operate when the broader infrastructure fails.


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