All About Bitchat, Jack Dorsey's Messaging App That Works Without Internet

Jack Dorsey, the former Twitter co-founder and CEO of Block, has launched a new messaging app, Bitchat. It's making noise in the tech world for all the right reasons. Bithchat is an offline texting app that doesn't rely on an internet connection and runs using Bluetooth.

What is Bitchat?

Bitchat is a peer-to-peer messaging app that lets you send messages offline via Bluetooth. This means that you can chat with people without relying on mobile data or Wi-Fi. The app is a convenient option when there is a weak connection or no connection at all.

my weekend project to learn about bluetooth mesh networks, relays and store and forward models, message encryption models, and a few other things.

bitchat: bluetooth mesh chat...IRC vibes.

TestFlight: https://t.co/P5zRRX0TB3
GitHub: https://t.co/Yphb3Izm0P pic.twitter.com/yxZxiMfMH2

— jack (@jack) July 6, 2025

How does Bitchat work?

Bitchat allows devices to connect directly with each other over short distances. It doesn't require central servers, phone numbers, or internet or email addresses. As people walk around with their phones, the app uses Bluetooth to connect nearby devices and form a group.

In case the person is at a far distance, the message hops from one phone to another nearby phone until it reaches the intended person. This process is called mesh networking.

The messages are sent to nearby devices using end-to-end encryption, so no one can read the message, except the sender and the final recipient.

Features of Bitchat

1.    Offline communication: Works without internet using Bluetooth mesh networking
2.    End-to-end encryption: All messages are encrypted 
3.    Extended range: Messages relayed through peers, reaching up to 300 meters or 984 feet
4.    Mention: Use @nickname to notify specific users
5.    Rooms: Create rooms for topic-based conversations
6.    Password rooms: Secure rooms with passwords and AES encryption
7.    Privacy: No tracking, no servers, accounts or data collection

Is Bitchat available for download?

Bitchat is currently in the beta testing phase, available to a limited number of iOS users through Apple's TestFlight platform, where it quickly reached the 10,000-user limit. The official release date has not yet been announced. The developers are also working on the Android version.