AChatOpen AChat

Release notes

What changed in AChat?

What changed in AChat, newest first. Each entry has the date it shipped and, where there is one, the limit that came with it.

Older entries describe AChat as it was on the date shown.

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  1. Version 0.4.0Release

    Earlier messages, a contact form and a polish pass

    Long chats open with their 200 newest messages, and Load earlier brings back the rest. Search now says how far back it has looked and can load more. A new Contact page reaches the AChat team. Also added: analytics and error reports that never include chat IDs or messages, lists that load in bounded pages, over-the-air updates and in-app update and review prompts on Android, readable page content for search engines and AI assistants, and optional welcome, account-deletion and kept-chat reminder emails.

  2. Version 0.3.0New

    Add a password to an open chat

    An open chat can now be locked later. Open it, choose Add password and set one. From then on everyone else needs the password to read it, and new messages are encrypted in your browser.

    Known limit Messages sent while the chat was open aren't encrypted afterwards, and anyone with the link may already have seen them. A password can be set once, and there's no recovery if you lose it.

  3. Version 0.3.0Release

    Built for Google Play

    AChat was packaged for Android as version 0.3.0: the same no-signup chat as the web. It included everything shipped so far: optional password encryption, files, threads, reactions, polls, public communities, on-device search across chats, message delete with a per-chat Trash, a private archive for signed-in people, and optional Google sign-in to keep chats past 10 days. At the time, the app asked only for internet access and vibration.

    Known limit This build wasn't uploaded. The first Play release was 0.4.0 in July 2026.

  4. Version 0.2.0New

    Delete, Trash and private archive

    Delete a message or a whole chat, and it goes to that chat's Trash for up to 30 days, never longer than the chat would have lasted. Also new: links to a single message, forwarding, read and unread marks, archiving chats on this device, and Save a copy as HTML or Markdown. Signed-in people can privately archive a chat so only their account can open it.

    Known limit In anonymous chats, deleting only your own messages is a rule of the interface. Anyone with the link can technically delete or restore.

  5. Version 0.2.0New

    Search across your chats

    Search the chat you're in, or every chat you've opened recently. Results are ranked and forgive typos. Search runs on your device, so your search terms never leave it: AChat keeps a local copy of your last 5 chats, or 10 when you're signed in, and wipes it when you sign out.

    Known limit A passworded chat is searchable only while it's open, unless you've saved its password. Then its decrypted text is kept on the device.

  6. Version 0.2.0New

    Delete your account in the app

    If you signed in with Google, you can delete your account yourself: Account, then Delete account, then type DELETE. It removes your account record, activity, achievements, referral link and reservations, and your kept chats go back to the 10-day default. A new delete-account page explains the steps. Your anonymous messages were never tied to the account, so they're unaffected.

  7. Version 0.2.0New

    Threads, groups, communities and a widget

    Reply in threads to keep side conversations tidy. Create named private group chats. Browse public communities anyone can join without an account, with categories, a profanity filter, report buttons and moderators the owner picks. And put an anonymous AChat on any website with the new widget, inside the page or as a floating button. Only creating a community needs sign-in.

    Known limit Community moderation runs in the browser, so it's best-effort.

  8. Version 0.2.0New

    Keep chats past 10 days

    Sign in with Google, if you want to, and reserve up to 100 chats to keep their history past the 10-day auto-delete, for 3 months to start. Achievements such as staying active, inviting friends and installing the app extend that to about a year. Open chats go to whoever reserves first, and a passworded chat asks for its password. AChat stores only your email, name, photo and a user ID, and doesn't link your account to what you wrote.

  9. Version 0.2.0Fix

    Each message now expires on its own

    Each message disappears about 10 days after it was sent, rather than the whole chat at once. This fixes a bug that could expire a chat's record before its newest message. Reserved chats last until their kept-until date.

  10. Version 0.2.0Fix

    Copy keeps line breaks, and actions stay in reach

    Copying a message keeps every line break and tab. Message actions stay reachable however long a message is: a hover bar with a More menu on desktop, and a long-press sheet on touch screens. Very long messages collapse, with Show more, Show less and Open full.

  11. Version 0.1.0New

    A Features page

    A public Features page lists what AChat does, linked from the header and footer. It covers this update's 30 additions, including self-destruct timers, view-once messages, spoilers, a privacy screen, panic wipe, pinned messages, polls, drafts, a command palette, per-chat mute, read-aloud, dictation, maths, stickers, image zoom, a who's-here list, mention highlights, five interface languages, on-device translation, focus mode and offline HTML export.

  12. Version 0.1.0Release

    AChat 0.1.0, a Play Store re-release candidate

    Version 0.1.0 across web, Android and iOS. A clean build replaces the production build that crashed, with every earlier feature and the fixes listed below.

  13. Version 0.1.0Search

    Pages search engines can read

    Every public page now has its own title, description and share preview, plus structured data. The page shell also carries readable content for crawlers that don't run JavaScript, AI assistants included.

  14. Version 0.1.0Speed

    Chats open faster

    The code a chat needs before it appears dropped from 688 KB to 119 KB. The message editor now loads after the chat is on screen, and QR codes load only when you open Share.

  15. Version 0.1.0Accessibility

    Visible keyboard focus and larger small text

    Menu items now show a focus ring when you use the keyboard, meeting WCAG 2.1 AA. Text in the 17 places that used the smallest sizes is now at least 12 px.

  16. Version 0.1.0Android app

    Room for the Android keyboard

    When the keyboard opens in the Android app, the page resizes to fit above it.

  17. Version 0.1.0Fix

    A hardening pass

    Voice notes in the app now ask for microphone permission, and the store listing declares it. The composer shows a focus outline. Links keep their state when you share, search, open an image or go full screen, and the mention list opens in the right place.

    Known limit The microphone permission was later removed. Version 1.7.0 asks for it again, for voice notes only.

  18. Version 0.1.0New

    Install AChat from your browser

    AChat can be installed from the browser, and its first screen loads without a connection. You can opt in to a push subscription, and to link previews from microlink.io.

    Known limit No push notifications are sent by default.

  19. Version 0.1.0New

    Onboarding, vim keys and per-chat looks

    A four-step tour on your first chat. Vim-style navigation keys (G, gg, j, k). An appearance and accent colour for each chat, and named theme presets you can import and export. Share buttons for WhatsApp, Telegram and X. A chat you can embed on other websites. A per-chat activity log.

    Known limit The activity log stays on this device and keeps 200 entries.

  20. Version 0.1.0New

    Composer, reactions, files and presence

    An emoji picker, slash commands, @mentions, editing your last message, code highlighting, search with Ctrl or Cmd+F, and Markdown export with Ctrl or Cmd+E. Six quick reactions on keys 1–6. Quote replies, with a swipe on touch screens. Several files at once, swipeable images, native sharing, opt-in notifications with sound and vibration, and a typing indicator.

  21. Version 0.1.0Release

    AChat v1

    The first public version: the theme customiser, public pages (about, privacy, terms, sitemap and feed), file uploads, and the Android and iOS app shells.