Offline Bluetooth mesh
A messenger that doesn't need the internet.
PIING Nearby builds a mesh out of the PIING phones around you. Your message hops phone to phone over Bluetooth until it reaches your friend, sealed so nobody in between can read it.
How the mesh works
- Swap keys once, onlineOpen a chat with a friend while you have signal. PIING exchanges the keys that keep Nearby messages private.
- Signal drops, Nearby startsPIING finds other PIING phones over Bluetooth automatically.
- Up to 5 hopsYour message is passed phone to phone; each phone extends the range by roughly 10 to 50 metres.
- Delivered, with a tickOnly your friend can open it. Phones in between can't read it.
Encryption details: Nearby messages use X25519 encryption, not the post-quantum keys used for online chats. See Security.
Questions
What is a Bluetooth mesh messenger?
An app that sends messages directly between nearby phones over Bluetooth, relaying them through other phones to reach people further away, with no mobile network or Wi-Fi.
Does PIING Nearby need Wi-Fi or mobile data?
No. It uses Bluetooth, phone to phone.
Can the phones relaying my message read it?
No. Messages are end-to-end encrypted, so only the people in the chat can read them.
Which devices does it work on?
PIING for iPhone. Both people need PIING installed.