PyroChat for Android

beta on Google Play, open to anyone

── join the beta ──

  1. Join the tester group with the Google account you use on your phone. Nothing is posted there and members can't see each other.
    [ join the tester group ]
  2. Open the test page with that same account and tap Become a tester.
    [ become a tester ]
  3. Install PyroChat from Google Play. Updates arrive through Play like any other app.
    [ open in google play ]

Android 10 or newer, 64-bit phones. Same protocol and same screens as the iPhone app; the two talk to each other. The public Play listing opens once the beta has run for two weeks, so please keep the app installed at least that long. Bugs and ideas: [email protected].

── first launch ──

  • Create your identity. Nothing is asked of you but a username and a password, and the password never leaves the phone.
  • Tap [+] and add pyrobot, the demo contact, to see delivery and read status, self-destructing messages and screenshot alerts.
  • In [cfg], turn on wake push if you want a sound when a message waits while the app is closed. The notification never carries a sender or text.

── no google play? ──

For phones without Google services (GrapheneOS, LineageOS and the like) the same app is available as a direct download, signed with our release key.

download pyrochat 0.1.0 (apk, 21.4 MB)

Pick one source and stay with it. The Play build and this file are signed differently, so moving from one to the other means uninstalling first, and uninstalling erases your identity and every message on the phone.

  • Open the downloaded file. Android asks you to allow installs from your browser the first time; allow it for this one install.

── verify the apk ──

SHA-256 of the file:

481d64b5931308dd70f55d3f74f80b6ec566e626ed6f6b69fb2cffea91bbb61d

Signing certificate SHA-256 (what apksigner verify --print-certs shows):

bf90377b95f85ddfcd95726e8c25fc8683ca92ef1a749f94470a8ee777d872b7

If either differs, do not install it and write to [email protected].

── what it contains ──

The app's source will be published under the AGPL with the App Store release. The build asks for the camera (scanning QR codes only when you open that screen), the microphone (voice notes only while you hold the button) and notifications (optional). No contacts, no location, no analytics, no crash reporting.