messaging apps

What’s next for Texts.com under new owner Automattic, as Apple cracks down on rival Beeper

What’s next for Texts.com? The all-in-one messaging app was acquired this fall by WordPress.com owner Automattic for $50 million, marking the company’s first official expansion into the w

Signal details costs of keeping its private messaging service alive

What price privacy? End-to-end encrypted (E2EE) messaging app Signal has put out an interesting overview of the costs required to develop and maintain its pro-privacy systems which shield user data fr

WhatsApp now lets users create groups without names

WhatsApp today introduced a feature that lets users create groups on the instant messaging app without needing to name them — an update over the existing way that requires users to specify group nam

WhatsApp’s first original film to air on Prime Video and YouTube, NBA player Giannis Antetokounmpo stars

Meta-owned messaging app WhatsApp is stepping into the film business. Earlier this week, WhatsApp announced its first original short film “Naija Odyssey,” which tells the story of NBA player Giann

WhatsApp confirms some users have access to its new group discussions feature, WhatsApp Communities

WhatsApp Communities, the messaging app’s anticipated expansion aimed at supporting larger discussion groups, has now rolled out to additional users as it nears a public launch. The company decl

Wire grabs fresh funding for secure messaging tech that’s big with G7 governments

More funding for European end-to-end encrypted messaging app, Wire: The enterprise-focused messaging platform told TechCrunch it closed a €24 million Series C round of funding led by growth equity f

Google’s new campaign attempts to publicly pressure Apple into adopting RCS

Google is launching a new “Get The Message” campaign and website today to pressure Apple into changing its mind on RCS. The tech giant has been increasingly calling out Apple for not adopt

WhatsApp is adding new privacy options, including screenshot blocking and a stealth mode

WhatsApp is introducing a small flurry of privacy-minded tweaks into the messaging app, the company announced on Tuesday. The Meta-owned globally ubiquitous messaging service says the changes aim to g

WhatsApp now lets you hide your profile picture and ‘Last seen’ status from specific people

WhatsApp announced this week that it’s rolling out the ability for users to select who from their contact list can see their profile photo, about and “Last seen” status. Prior to the

Telegram confirms it’ll launch a premium sub this month

Free messaging app Telegram is getting into the subscription game. Founder Pavel Durov confirmed today a paid offering is coming later this month which will go above and beyond the current free experi

Messenger adds new shortcuts, including a Slack-like ‘@everyone’ feature

Meta, formerly known as Facebook, is introducing several new features and shortcuts to its Messenger app. Most notably, the company is adding a new Slack-like “@everyone” functionality tha

Messenger’s ‘Split Payments’ feature is rolling out to all users in the US

Messenger is rolling out its “Split Payments” feature to all iOS and Android users in the United States, Meta announced on Wednesday. The company began testing the feature late last year a

WhatsApp is integrating its joinable calls feature directly into group chats

WhatsApp announced on Monday that it’s expanding its joinable calls feature to group chats. Joinable calls, which were first introduced in July, allow users to join an ongoing group call after it ha

MobileCoin closes on $66 million in equity in Series B round

MobileCoin, a cryptocurrency startup that counts founder Moxie Marlinspike of the encrypted messaging app Signal as its earliest technical advisor, has raised $66 million in Series B funding from a lo

Element, a messaging app built on the decentralized Matrix protocol, raises $30M

After Element acquired Gitter last year to bring in more users and features into its own decentralized, Matrix-based messaging app, the startup is announcing some funding to invest in its growth. Elem

Zebra raises $1.1M in a pre-seed round for messaging that pairs photos with voice chat

A new voice-based social app that cites Clubhouse as its biggest inspiration offers a playful new way to stay in touch with close friends and family. Zebra leaves video out of the equation altogether

Yalo raises $50M to build ‘c-commerce’ services for chat apps like WhatsApp

Facebook has long been working on raising WhatsApp’s profile as a channel for businesses to interact with (and sell to) their customers. Today, a startup that has built a suite of tools for reta

Update: Telegram raises $1BN+, including $150M from Mubadala and Abu Dhabi CP via pre-IPO convertible bonds

Update: Telegram has now announced it’s pulled in over $1BN in debt financing by selling bonds. Founder Pavel Durov put out an update via his official Telegram channel after a press announcement

Quill, the messaging app backed by Index, quietly comes out of stealth to take on Slack

Slack took the workplace communications landscape by storm after it launched its integration-friendly, GIF-tastic chat platform in 2013. Within the space of a decade it entered into the pantheon of Bi

Following backlash, WhatsApp to roll out in-app banner to better explain its privacy update

Last month, Facebook-owned WhatsApp announced it would delay enforcement of its new privacy terms, following a backlash from confused users which later led to a legal challenge in India and various re
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