China Orders Apple to Remove Jack Dorsey’s Bitchat from App Store

Apple has removed Bitchat, the decentralized messaging app created by Block CEO Jack Dorsey, from its China App Store following a direct order from Beijing’s internet regulator.

The Cyberspace Administration of China cited violations of regulations governing services with public opinion or social mobilization capabilities, marking the second time Chinese authorities have targeted a Dorsey-backed decentralized application.

Bitchat operates entirely over Bluetooth and mesh networks without requiring internet connectivity, a design that fundamentally challenges China’s digital surveillance infrastructure and the ability to monitor communications.

According to the regulatory filing, Bitchat violated provisions under 2018 Chinese internet regulations that require security assessments before launching services classified as having “public opinions or capable of social mobilization” attributes. The app’s architecture, which enables peer-to-peer messaging without central servers, made it a target for regulators concerned about unmonitored communication channels.

Dorsey announced the removal in a Sunday tweet, keeping the disclosure brief without additional commentary on the regulatory action. Bitchat has gained significant traction globally, reaching over three million total downloads across platforms and registering 83,000 downloads in the past week alone.

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Bitchat has become a critical tool during recent protests across Madagascar, Uganda, Iran, Nepal, and Indonesia. The app’s mesh networking technology allows messages to hop between devices without relying on central servers or internet infrastructure, making it particularly valuable during government-imposed connectivity blackouts and internet shutdowns.

This functionality proved especially useful in countries where authorities attempt to suppress dissent by cutting off internet access. Unlike traditional messaging platforms that require continuous connection, Bitchat’s offline-first design enables communication even when cellular networks or broadband services are deliberately disabled.

The app’s TestFlight version had reportedly reached its 10,000-user limit on Apple’s platform before the Chinese removal, while the Google Play Store version has registered over one million downloads separately. These numbers demonstrate significant demand for censorship-resistant communication tools outside of China.

WeChat, China’s dominant messaging platform, serves 1.34 billion monthly active users out of a national population exceeding 1.4 billion, operating under comprehensive government oversight and content moderation requirements.

Bitchat’s architecture explicitly avoids the centralized design that allows governments to monitor and censor communications. This fundamental difference positioned the app as incompatible with China’s regulatory framework, which prioritizes surveillance capabilities and content control over user privacy.

This is 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 identical concerns about unmonitored communication channels.

Damus operated similarly to Bitchat in its resistance to traditional content moderation and centralized control. The platform’s removal from Chinese app stores followed the same regulatory logic that peer-to-peer applications enabling unrestricted communication pose risks to state oversight.

Dorsey has become a vocal advocate for decentralized internet technologies and censorship-resistant platforms. His involvement with projects like Nostr and Bitchat reflects a broader commitment to building tools that operate outside traditional regulatory frameworks.

The removal highlights ongoing friction between Web3 developers and authoritarian governments seeking to maintain digital control. As decentralized communication platforms mature and gain adoption, regulatory pressure from major markets like China will likely intensify.

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For Bitchat users in China, the removal from the official App Store does not necessarily prevent access to the application, as users can still download it through alternative methods. However, the symbolic significance of the removal signals official government disapproval and may discourage mainstream adoption within China.

The incident underscores the ongoing challenge facing decentralized application developers: building tools that genuinely resist censorship while navigating the practical realities of app store distribution and regulatory compliance in major jurisdictions.