Massa x ADAMANT Community Call Video and Q-A transcription

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Can you tell us what ADAMANT is, for those that don’t know?

ADAMANT is a decentralized messaging platform with built-in crypto wallet. Privacy is the priority, as well full control over users’ data and assets. It is open-source; anyone can revise the code.

ADM differs from others, it operates on a blockchain. Messages are basically transactions, encrypted and stored across a decentralized network.

ADAMANT requires no phone numbers, no emails to create an account. You create an account in one second, one tap on a button. It makes anonymity a convenient feature.

When you chat, IP addresses are hidden from other users, it’s by design! But if you are seeking enhanced anonymity, we even provide a Tor application.

It’s better to try than to hear. Go to the adamant.im website and download the application for your device.

Why did you choose to build ADAMANT? What problems does a decentralized messenger answer to?

The reason is the growing concerns over total surveillance and the lack of privacy in traditional messengers. They collect and store user data and messages.

As an example, contrary to popular belief, Telegram is the least secure messenger; it doesn’t even have built-in end-to-end encryption, and it has access to your correspondence. This was the reason why Pavel Durov was detained in France — to obtain the encryption keys from him, and I’m sure they got the keys.

But strong encryption is not everything. Privacy also matters. When you create an account with a phone number, we already cannot talk about privacy.

Another point is trust… Do you trust WhatsApp owned by Meta? How can we even trust an application with closed source code? That’s why we made ADAMANT open-source. Don’t trust! Build both node and messenger applications from source.

Inside the community we share the same values as Bitcoin does. Distributed network infrastructure… open-source… independence of governments, corporations, and even developers. This eliminates single points of failure and makes it resistant to censorship. Finally we move forward with a community development model like Bitcoin has. There is no company or person to press on.

Not the main part but… ADAMANT also offers new possibilities in crypto like storing and transferring coins in chats with full control of private keys.

What are the main technical challenges of running a decentralized messaging system?

Indeed there are many technical challenges. It’s complex to ensure scalability, low latency, and performance with a decentralized infrastructure.

Even simple functions which are familiar in traditional messengers, require detailed study and innovation. For instance, I don’t know of any other messenger that sends files through IPFS.

That’s why ADAMANT operates on a specialized blockchain but not on Ethereum, Solana, or… whatever. ADM is designed for messaging.

Also, the main part is working NOT on a server side, but locally on a user device. It’s quite challenging to perform everything on a user device… encryption, data processing…

From a partnership pov, what are the advantages of hosting ADAMANT on DeWeb?

Resistance to… censorship. It is a key feature of DeWeb that attracted the community to Massa. Some governments are already trying to block ADAMANT.

There are other ways like providing a Tor application, but Tor can be complex for regular users. Massa offers public DeWeb providers, making websites easier to access with no additional software. Just a web browser.

This integration is a step to a fully decentralized web. It makes applications more secure, private, and censorship-resistant.

How did you hear about Massa in the first place?

We heard about Massa through communities and forums.

Massa’s innovative approach to decentralization, scalability and security caught our attention. And we saw an alignment between our goals and Massa’s capabilities, leading to this partnership.

Remember cypherpunk and Bitcoin… We see these in Massa too.

What do you think is needed for decentralized communication apps like ADAMANT to reach mainstream adoption?

Perfect user experience like in traditional messengers.

Intuitive interface, fast performance… Why do users like WhatsApp, Telegram? Because they are convenient and look nice. Have you ever tried non-mainstream anonymous messengers? They are clunky.

Also, educating users will be crucial. Tell about benefits of decentralization, privacy and understanding the value of data.

What’s next for ADAMANT? Are there any upcoming features or developments that users should be excited about?

Sure! The community is constantly working on improving the user experience, and adding new features.

The most exciting are group chats and channels. They will be unstoppable, where censorship is impossible. While this feature has many concerns… it’s inevitable… whether ADAMANT will do it, or someone else. Bitcoin shifted a paradigm, and it’s time to accept that users personally are responsible for their data or messages, not a platform.

Stay tuned for updates.

Massa x ADAMANT Community Call Video and Q-A transcription was originally published in ADAMANT on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.