Key facts
- Bitchat, a censorship-resistant messaging app developed by Jack Dorsey, has seen a surge in downloads in India.
- The app operates on Bluetooth mesh networks and the Nostr protocol, requiring no internet access, phone numbers, or central servers.
- India's Cybercrime Coordination Centre issued a notice to GitHub to restrict access to Bitchat repositories.
- The notice cited the app's ability to function during network restrictions as a hindrance to law enforcement.
- Despite the notice, GitHub repositories remained accessible, and the app continued to function and be distributed.
- Bitchat has previously been used during internet restrictions in Nepal and Iran.
Bitchat, a decentralized messaging application developed by Jack Dorsey, has resurfaced amid protests in India, drawing the attention of the country's cybercrime authorities. The app, designed to function without internet access, phone numbers, or central servers by utilizing Bluetooth mesh networks and the Nostr protocol, has been requested to be removed from GitHub.
Launched in July 2025, Bitchat enables peer-to-peer encrypted communication, allowing devices to form local mesh networks and relay messages across multiple hops. It also supports end-to-end encrypted private messages and public local channels. The application requires no registration and features a panic function to clear data. Its open-source code is hosted on GitHub, with versions available on app stores and through direct file sharing.
Recent updates allow Android devices to share installation files directly over Wi-Fi or Nearby Share, facilitating easy adoption without internet access. Key figures associated with the project include Jack Dorsey and open-source developer Calle. Bitcoin Magazine has previously noted experimental demonstrations of offline Bitcoin-related payments using the mesh technology.
Bitchat has previously seen significant adoption during periods of government-restricted connectivity, including in Nepal in September 2025 and Iran in January 2026. These instances established a pattern of rapid adoption for tools operating independently of conventional networks when they become unreliable or restricted.
The recent events in India are linked to the cancellation of the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET-UG) in May 2026 due to a significant leak, which led to widespread protests demanding accountability from Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. During demonstrations in mid-July, reports indicated mobile data and internet blackouts in protest areas.
On July 24, 2026, the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) directed GitHub to restrict access to three Bitchat repositories within three hours, citing the app's architecture as an impediment to lawful interception and investigation during network shutdowns. Jack Dorsey shared the notice on X, highlighting the government's opposition to such technologies.
Market data indicated that India accounted for approximately 85 percent of the app's global downloads between July 17 and 23, with over 91,000 downloads and daily active users exceeding 330,000 at its peak. Despite the takedown attempt, the GitHub repositories remained accessible, and developers distributed mirrors on decentralized platforms. The app itself continued to function, and its offline file-sharing feature aided further distribution. Education Minister Pradhan resigned on July 25.
The use of messaging tools during protests is not unprecedented. Platforms like Twitter and Facebook played roles in coordinating demonstrations during the Arab Spring. More technologically similar was FireChat, a mesh-networking app used during Hong Kong's Umbrella Movement in 2014. Bitchat builds on this by integrating with Bitcoin-associated technologies, utilizing the Nostr protocol, and employing stronger cryptographic defaults with fully open-source code. Its self-replicating distribution methods illustrate a further evolution in decentralized communication tools.