What Berty Technologies does

Berty Technologies is a French non-profit organization (association loi 1901) founded in 2018 and headquartered in Paris, operating with a team of approximately 10 people. The organization develops open-source peer-to-peer communication tools centered on the Berty Messenger application and the underlying Wesh Network protocol (formerly Berty Protocol). The technology stack is built on IPFS and libp2p; mobile clients are implemented in React Native with native BLE drivers, and the backend is written in Go. Encryption combines NaCl cryptography with Signal's symmetric-key ratchet to provide end-to-end encryption and perfect forward secrecy. The application enables messaging without requiring a phone number or email, supports offline communication via Bluetooth Low Energy, Apple Multipeer Connectivity, and Android Nearby, and operates without central servers.

The product portfolio extends beyond the messenger app to a set of developer-facing libraries, including gomobile-ipfs (a framework for embedding full IPFS nodes in iOS and Android), go-orbit-db (a Go port of OrbitDB using CRDT for distributed message ordering), and go-ipfs-log. Distribution occurs through the Apple App Store, Google Play, GitHub source repositories, and a merchandise boutique at berty-tech.myshopify.com. The user base spans a horizontal set of personas: privacy-conscious individuals, journalists, activists, lawyers, whistleblowers, and government/military personnel requiring secure communication in adversarial environments.

Berty generates no product revenue; as a French non-profit it is explicitly 'incapable of making profit' and does not sell a product. Operations are funded entirely through donations, sponsorships, and grants, most notably a $1 million grant from Nodle in 2022 and ongoing collaboration with Protocol Labs. Marketing and adoption are community-led, relying on open-source contributions, a 400+ member Discord community, a newsletter, conference participation (IPFS Camp, Paris Blockchain Week, ParisP2P Festival, FOSDEM), and word-of-mouth exposure following HackerNews and Reddit features.

Name

Berty Technologies

Legal name

Berty Technologies

Website

https://berty.tech

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Berty Technologies is a Paris-based French non-profit that develops Berty Messenger and the Wesh Network, an open-source IPFS/libp2p-based peer-to-peer encrypted messaging protocol serving privacy-conscious individuals, journalists, activists, and other at-risk communications scenarios.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Secure Messaging Software

NAICS

Telecommunications (517), All Other Telecommunications (517810)

SIC

Telegraph & Other Message Communications (4822)

akta.pro primary industry

Secure/Encrypted Messaging (BPAMACAG)

Keywords

• Peer-to-peer messaging
• End-to-end encryption
• Decentralized communication
• Offline messaging protocol
• Privacy-focused messenger

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Donations and Sponsorships: As a non-profit organization under French law 1901, Berty Technologies relies entirely on donations from sponsors and the community. The organization explicitly states it cannot and does not want to sell user data, and does not sell products. Revenue comes from grants (such as Nodle's $1 million grant) and public/private sponsor donations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Berty Technologies develops and distributes Berty Messenger, a free, open-source peer-to-peer encrypted messaging application for Android and iOS that operates without central servers, without requiring a phone number or email, and supports offline communication via Bluetooth Low Energy, Apple Multipeer Connectivity, and Android Nearby. Underpinning the app is the Wesh Network protocol, an open-source asynchronous mesh network built on IPFS/libp2p with end-to-end encryption using the Signal symmetric-key ratchet and NaCl cryptography. Supporting open-source developer libraries include gomobile-ipfs, go-orbit-db, and go-ipfs-log.

Product overview

Berty Technologies is a French non-profit organization ( loi 1901 ) that develops a portfolio of open-source privacy-focused communication products. The core offering consists of Berty Messenger (a peer-to-peer encrypted messaging application) and the underlying Wesh Network protocol (an asynchronous mesh network). Developer tools include gomobile-ipfs (for running IPFS on mobile), go-orbit-db (CRDT-based distributed database), and go-ipfs-log. All products are built on IPFS/libp2p infrastructure with end-to-end encryption using NaCl cryptography and Signal's symmetric-key ratchet protocol.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Wesh Network: An open source, wild & asynchronous mesh network protocol powered by Berty Technologies' non-profit organisation.
• Berty Messenger

Products and services

• Berty Messenger A free, open-source peer-to-peer encrypted messaging application for Android and iOS that enables secure private communication without requiring personal data such as a phone number or email. It supports offline messaging via Bluetooth Low Energy, Apple Multipeer Connectivity, and Android Nearby, and operates as a fully distributed network with no central servers.
• Wesh Network An open-source, asynchronous mesh network protocol that powers decentralized communication. It enables peer-to-peer messaging without internet connectivity, using direct transports including Bluetooth Low Energy, Apple Multipeer Connectivity, and Android Nearby. The Wesh Network is the underlying infrastructure that Berty Messenger is built on.

Quantifiable outcome

• Distributed, decentralized, open-source, no phone/email required, end-to-end encrypted, offline messaging, multi-device support, and privacy-respecting terms of use

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Protocol Labs (IPFS)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 June 2019Protocol Labs is the organization behind IPFS and libp2p, the core technologies powering the Wesh Protocol. Berty uses IPFS as its foundational P2P networking layer and has collaborated extensively with Protocol Labs, including co-hosting IPFS Camp in Barcelona. Default bootstrapping nodes, relay nodes, and DHT services are operated by both Berty and Protocol Labs.
• IPFS CommunitycoreTechnology or IntegrationBerty actively participates in the IPFS ecosystem, contributing to gomobile-ipfs, go-orbit-db, and other projects. The Wesh Protocol builds directly on IPFS/libp2p infrastructure.
• ParisP2PminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParis-based P2P technology community and festival organizer that Berty partners with for events and community building.
• 42 (École 42)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench coding school that Berty partners with for talent and community engagement.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wire: Wire offers end-to-end encrypted messaging, voice, and video for consumers and enterprises. It is a direct competitor in the secure-messaging category with comparable cryptographic foundations (Proteus/Messaging Layer Security) and overlapping professional/enterprise use cases.
• Briar: Briar is an open-source messaging app designed for activists and journalists that, like Berty, supports communication over Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and Tor without internet. It is one of the only peers sharing Berty's offline-mesh capability and similar at-risk-user positioning.
• Element (Matrix): Element is built on the Matrix open protocol for federated, end-to-end encrypted real-time communication. Like Berty it is open-source and decentralized, and similarly targets privacy-sensitive users including journalists and activists — making it the most structurally comparable direct peer.
• Threema: Threema is a Swiss-based, end-to-end encrypted messenger that emphasizes anonymity (no phone number required) — directly comparable to Berty's no-phone-number, privacy-first positioning for the same at-risk European user base.
• Signal: Signal is the most prominent end-to-end encrypted messenger, also using the Signal protocol for encryption (which Berty adopts for its symmetric-key ratchet). It is the closest direct peer in the privacy-focused consumer messaging category, though centralized rather than P2P.
• Session (Oxen): Session is a private, end-to-end encrypted messenger that routes messages through a decentralized onion-routing network (Oxen). It shares Berty's privacy-first, no-phone-number, decentralized ethos and competes for the same at-risk-user segment.

Emerging players

• Keybase: Keybase offered end-to-end encrypted messaging, file sharing, and identity verification. While its chat product was wound down after the Zoom acquisition, its open-source cryptographic stack and PGP-keyed identity model informed the design space Berty operates in.
• Status: Status is an open-source, decentralized messaging and Web3 browser built on Ethereum. It overlaps with Berty in targeting privacy-conscious users and integrating blockchain/P2P infrastructure, but extends further into crypto wallet and dapp functionality.
• Tox Chat: Tox is an open-source, peer-to-peer, end-to-end encrypted messaging protocol with no central servers — architecturally the closest analogue to Berty's Wesh Network, though with a smaller community and less mobile maturity.

Broad incumbents

• Telegram: Telegram is a dominant global messenger with optional end-to-end encrypted Secret Chats and large group/ channel features. It does not match Berty's P2P architecture but competes for the same privacy-conscious and at-risk-user audience at massive scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/berty
• GitHubgithub.com/berty

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Berty Technologies