Nepal protests spark digital revolution in decentralized communications

As Nepal’s wave of anti-corruption protests are set off nationwide, Nepalese people quickly adopt bitchat, a decentralized communications application developed by Jack Dorsey, as an alternative to government restrictions on platforms. Downloads soared to 48,781 from less than 3,344 in the previous week, while social media was blocked due to anti-government content. The protests turned into violence, killing at least 19 people and forcing the Prime Minister to resign. This trend underscores the increasing global reliance on encryption, decentralized tools to circumvent censorship and surveillance.