The Great Firewall Meets Its Match: China Bans Jack Dorsey's Bluetooth Mesh App That Doesn't Even Use the Internet

Apple has pulled Bitchat, Jack Dorsey's decentralized messaging app, from China's App Store at the request of Beijing's internet regulator. The Cyberspace Administration of China argued the peer-to-peer messaging app violated regulations governing "Internet-based Information Services With Attribute of Public Opinions of Capable of Social Mobilization" – a provision under 2018 regulations that requires security assessments before launch. Because nothing says "public opinion" quite like Bluetooth Low Energy packets floating through the air like digital whispers that Beijing can't tap.

Here's the kicker: Bitchat operates entirely over Bluetooth and mesh networks without requiring internet connectivity. That's right – China's censorship apparatus is now targeting communication layers that don't even touch the internet. The app relays messages device-to-device via Bluetooth Low Energy, each hop covering up to 100 meters, with no central server, no user accounts, and no phone number requirements. It's basically the crypto equivalent of sending notes in class, except the teacher can't even see the paper.

Beijing's decision to pursue removal through Apple rather than a network-level block exposes the limits of the Great Firewall against offline mesh protocols: when you can't intercept the traffic, you target the distribution point. Devices already running Bitchat in China continue to operate normally – the app requires no App Store access or server check-ins post-install. Nothing says "we've got absolutely no idea what to do here" quite like begging Tim Cook to delete an app that works perfectly fine without any internet connection whatsoever.

The timing is noteworthy. Bitchat has been gaining serious traction globally, reaching more than three million total downloads across platforms and over 83,000 downloads in the past week alone. Its Apple TestFlight version had reportedly reached its 10,000 user limit before the Chinese removal, while the Google Play Store version has registered more than one million downloads separately. The app is basically winning the popularity contest right as the CCP decides it's too popular for its own good.

The app has become a protest tool of choice during internet shutdowns. After Nepal's authorities blocked 26 major platforms including Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube and Instagram, tens of thousands of Nepalis downloaded Bitchat. Downloads jumped from just over 3,300 to 48,881 in a matter of days – a surge of nearly 1,400%. Similar surges occurred in Madagascar, Uganda, Iran, and Indonesia during government-imposed connectivity blackouts. Governments around the world are essentially playing whack-a-mole with mesh networking, and the mole keeps winning.

This marks the second time Chinese authorities have targeted a Dorsey-backed decentralized application. In 2023, China banned Damus, a decentralized Twitter alternative built on the Nostr protocol that Dorsey has championed, citing similar concerns about unmonitored communication channels. Dorsey just can't catch a break from the CCP – it's like he's personally offending some bureaucrat in Beijing with his mere existence in the protocol space.

Meanwhile, in other crypto news: Charles Schwab is launching spot Bitcoin and Ethereum trading in the first half of 2026. FIFA named ADI Predictstreet as its first official prediction market partner for the 2026 World Cup. And Dmail Network, a decentralized email platform that operated for five years, announced it will gradually cease all services beginning on May 15, citing extremely high decentralized infrastructure costs for bandwidth, storage, and computing. Nothing like ending the week with some good old-fashioned infrastructure costs claiming another scalp in the decentralized space.