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Bitchat – A decentralized messaging app that works over Bluetooth mesh networks

(github.com)
778 points ananddtyagi | 5 comments | 07 Jul 25 00:05 UTC | HN request time: 1.068s | source
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moneywaters ◴[07 Jul 25 05:35 UTC] No.44487086[source]▶
I’ve been toying with a concept inspired by Apple’s Find My network: Imagine a decentralized, delay-tolerant messaging system where messages hop device-to-device (e.g., via Bluetooth, UWB, Wi-Fi Direct), similar to how “Find My” relays location via nearby iPhones.

Now add a twist: • Senders pay a small fee to send a message. • Relaying devices earn a micro-payment (could be tokens, sats, etc.) for carrying the message one hop further. • End-to-end encrypted, fully decentralized, optionally anonymous.

Basically, a “postal network” built on people’s phones, without needing a traditional internet connection. Works best in areas with patchy or no internet, or under censorship.

Obvious challenges: • Latency and reliability (it’s not real-time). • Abuse/spam prevention. • Power consumption and user opt-in. • Viable incentive structures.

What do you think? Is this viable? Any real-world use cases where this might be actually useful — or is it just a neat academic toy?

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1. simondanerd ◴[07 Jul 25 12:51 UTC] No.44489867[source]▶
I'd like to point you towards Meshtastic [1]. It's off-grid, decentralized text messaging that allows for encryption, and is inexpensive to get into (a basic node is about $30 or less), and don't require a license to operate.

The firmware on these devices is open source (minus proprietary blobs for ESP32 WiFi, etc.) and the community is active. Check the Meshmap [2] to see some nodes that have made their location public in your area.

[1] https://meshtastic.org/ [2] https://meshmap.net/

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2. rtkwe ◴[07 Jul 25 19:14 UTC] No.44493703[source]▶
The meshtastic coverage might be much better in your area than it looks on Meshmap too. It relies on being connected to the main MQTT [0] server to get placed there and lots of people don't do that because the chatter there can be spammy and irrelevant to you locally. There are many city or state specific MQTT meshes that are far more popular. For example NCMesh [1] has way better coverage in NC, though most contacts still happen over MQTT instead of via RF, compared to the same area on Meshmap.

So long as you're using the standard long fast and 0/20 frequency slot you'll still have your messages passed via NCMesh nodes even if you're using the broader US Mesh as your MQTT server.

[0] MQTT here simply tunnels the messages over the internet so you get placed in a broader chat room and pseudomesh than you could reach through RF.

[1] https://ncmesh.net/learn/#coverage

3. sneak ◴[07 Jul 25 19:37 UTC] No.44493882[source]▶
Meshtastic barely works. There are only a few hundred nodes in Las Vegas and already the main public channels are at high utilization with almost no real end user traffic on it.

I love the project and participate, but people mentioning stuff like this in response to buzzwords irritates me. Like ipfs it is a buzzword-driven curiosity, not a real solution to real problems that anyone has.

Additionally, the meshtastic encryption is a toy. In 2025 when you say encryption you make people think of modern features like replay resistance, perfect forward secrecy, etc. Meshtastic doesn’t do any of this.

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4. SamPatt ◴[08 Jul 25 15:03 UTC] No.44500667[source]▶
IPFS used to be a real solution, we used it as the base layer for the decentralized marketplace OpenBazaar and it worked fairly well for that. I haven’t followed it in a few years though.

IPNS, on the other hand...

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5. immibis ◴[08 Jul 25 19:09 UTC] No.44503025{3}[source]▶
I think of IPFS as a cross between HTTP and BitTorrent. Like BitTorrent it can seek a given dataset by some kind of hash, no matter where it's hosted; like HTTP it's more suitable for collections of small files.

In practice, it takes upwards of a whole minute to locate a file it's never seen before, so it's not terribly useful. It's better than nothing, but it's not terribly useful.

It's still cool that someone tried. IPFS is one in a long line of ideas that didn't really work. Occasionally some of these ideas have massive success, like the Internet, and Bitcoin.