What should the next chat app look like?

A critique of Signal's direction following its cryptocurrency integration, paired with a design manifesto for what an ideal next-generation chat application should look like. Key requirements outlined include: being an open, federated protocol rather than a single app; strong end-to-end encryption; user anonymity without phone number requirements; and reliability over feature bloat. The post also evaluates existing alternatives like Matrix and IRC, finding Matrix too complex and unreliable despite good intentions, while still preferring IRC for daily use.