Cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex, stablecoin provider Tether and a company called Hypercore have been working on a new P2P communication app called Keet.
The app allows users to conduct video calls, audio calls and text chats in a private manner. It also comes with the ability to share files between users.
The Chief Strategy Officer of Keet mentioned that with other applications such as Zoom, which are supposedly private, big tech can still collect a lot of metadata of users. With Keet, this won’t be possible anymore.
Keet, which uses a new technology called “Holepunch”, is soon planning to integrate stablecoin and bitcoin lightning payments into their app.
Holepunch, the technology that Keet is built on, operates similar to a BitTorrent-like computer network. Holepunch makes it possible for developers to build a variety of different apps. Neither Holepunch nor Hypercore rely on blockchains or native tokens to do what they do.
Currently, Holepunch and Keet’s code is closed to the public and not open-source. According to the companies, this is to prevent rogue Web3 VC forks. However, the plan is to make the code open-source by the end of the year.
According to Bitcoin Magazine, hypercore is a peer-to-peer data network built on signed, append-only logs. It operates similar to a blockchain but without requiring the same consensus mechanism or distributed ledger.
Keet is a “demo” application that was built using Holepunch.
It’s an encrypted, peer-to-peer video call and chat application. Reportedly, the three companies had been working on the underlying technology for the past five years and have invested over $10 million into the development so far.
One exciting news is that there is a plan on the horizon to enable both stablecoin payments and bitcoin lightning payments as an add-on. This way, users of Keet will be able to not only communicate in an encrypted, peer-to-peer manner but also send stablecoin payments and instant, low-cost lightning payments to other users on the platform.
Furthermore, developers that wish to build on top of Holepunch can use the lightning SDK to create their own apps that use micro-payments. This can be used to pay content creators and receive tips for example.
Lightning payments are still somewhat technical and complicated for most people. Apps like Keet are mission-critical in making lightning payments more user-friendly and accessible. This will help the adoption of the lightning network and bitcoin in general.
