OpenChat is a comprehensive, decentralized chat application operating on the Internet Computer blockchain. It offers direct messaging and private group chats akin to WhatsApp and Signal, public group features similar to Telegram, and “communities” that function like Slack workspaces or Discord servers. This adaptive, progressive web application (PWA) is designed to optimize screen usage across devices and integrates features similar to native apps, including push notifications. The complete development roadmap can be accessed here. The application is open source and functions through a collection of canister smart contracts. Users can inspect the code running on any canister at any time, with links provided to the specific version in source control to facilitate independent verification of authenticity. For each user, a canister is created that holds their direct chat data, tracks their group/community memberships, and acts as a wallet for managing tokens on OpenChat. Each group and “community” is structured as an individual canister. This architecture is designed to support scalability for hundreds of millions of users. OpenChat users can exchange messages containing tokens such as ICP, ckBTC, ckETH, and soon ckUSDT, enabling global remittance. The primary distinction of OpenChat from similar applications is its governance as a DAO.

OpenChat is associated with a utility token known as CHAT. - CHAT can be staked as neurons, similar to ICP neurons, enabling token holders to engage in the governance of OpenChat by voting on SNS proposals. By participating in this process, holders earn voting rewards, which increase the longer the tokens are staked, thus incentivizing holders to act with the long-term interests of OpenChat in mind. - OpenChat users can utilize CHAT to pay for Diamond membership and other premium features. - CHAT can also be used to reward contributions towards the evolution or growth of the OpenChat service, either through automated user rewards or through SNS proposals. CHAT has an initial supply of 100 million tokens, with 2.5% of the total supply minted annually to reward neuron holders for governance participation by voting on proposals. CHAT tokens can also be burned to reduce the supply. It is anticipated that as revenue derived from CHAT tokens for premium features increases, the burn rate will align with or even surpass the minting rate, potentially allowing the CHAT supply to stabilize or become deflationary over time. For further details about OpenChat's token, CHAT, please refer to Eulerpool.

The OpenChat DAO governs and directs the path of OpenChat using an on-chain automated system known as the SNS. Modifications to the OpenChat SNS DAO, which encompass the treasury of ICP and CHAT tokens, the various tokenomic parameters, and the OpenChat dapp itself, can only be enacted by the OpenChat SNS governance canister following the successful passage of proposals voted on by tens of thousands of CHAT neuron holders. The OpenChat SNS DAO was automatically established upon the adoption of this proposal by the Internet Computer's automated governance system, the NNS. It launched a public swap event on March 3, 2023, where 2,375 participants deposited a total of 1 million ICP tokens to the SNS in exchange for 25 million CHAT tokens. Upon the completion of the swap, the OpenChat SNS DAO became active. The initial distribution of CHAT tokens was as follows: - 52%: Reserved for the SNS treasury and under the control of the OpenChat DAO - 25%: Distributed to the public through the NNS-run swap event - 15%: Allocated to the OpenChat development team with a vesting period of 4 years - 8%: Allocated to DFINITY for seed funding with a vesting period of 2 years A small portion of the treasury has been allocated (by proposal) to liquidity pools on various decentralized exchanges, with the majority reserved to support ongoing development and other contributions, as well as to algorithmically reward OpenChat users. By rewarding hundreds of thousands of engaged users with CHAT tokens and neurons, the goal is to build a large team of advocates motivated by the success of OpenChat.

OpenChat was established by three software developers: Matt Grogan, Hamish Peebles, and Julian Jelfs. The trio initially became acquainted while collaborating for several years on building a platform for online travel agencies. Matt Grogan, who began his career in the 1990s, worked closely for many years with Dominic Williams, the founder and Chief Scientist of DFINITY, on various software ventures. In 2020, Dominic invited Matt to develop applications for the Internet Computer. Consequently, Matt invited Hamish and Julian to join him in forming a team, resulting in the creation of OpenChat. Matt possesses nearly 30 years of experience as a software developer across a diverse array of industries and technology stacks, primarily involving web technologies. He obtained a master's degree in Engineering and Computer Science from the University of Oxford. Hamish Peebles, after earning a master's degree in Mathematics from the University of Cambridge, pursued a career in software engineering, concentrating on high throughput, low latency cloud-based systems. With approximately 25 years of experience in software engineering, Julian Jelfs has a diverse industry background spanning defense, risk management, e-commerce, education technology, and travel, leading to a specialization in functional front ends. He holds a master's degree in Politics, Philosophy & Economics from the University of Oxford.

At the time of writing, CHAT tokens can be purchased with ICP on various decentralized exchanges (DEXes), including: - ICDex - ICPSwap - Sonic Support for the Rosetta API is forthcoming, which will facilitate seamless integration with centralized exchanges (CEXes). Once implemented, it is likely that CHAT will be available for trading on CEXes for ICP or USDT.