Telegram's Super App Approach: The Intersection of Blockchain and Instant Messaging

• Telegram

With 800 million monthly active users worldwide, the popular messenger Telegram is gradually morphing into a super app, a strategy reminiscent of WeChat's approach. Key aspects of this ecosystem will be decentralized with the assistance of two powerhouses: Telegram's crypto partner, the TON Foundation, and WeChat's owner, Tencent.

The world of instant messaging is evolving, with Telegram taking a bold step towards a super-app approach that echoes WeChat. Collaboration with the TON Foundation and Tencent Cloud is reshaping the crypto space.

Building the Super App Platform

Telegram is creating a platform where third-party developers can construct mini-apps for user interaction. These apps are as diverse as games and restaurants, and developers can use JavaScript to create flexible interfaces that can be launched directly inside Telegram. This powerful feature has the potential to replace any website.

Telegram depends on a network of infrastructure partners from the tech world and the crypto space to develop this super app platform. Among them is The Open Network (TON) Foundation, which provides the blockchain foundation for Telegram while operating as an independent organization.

TON Foundation's Partnership with Tencent Cloud

This week, the TON Foundation announced a partnership with Tencent Cloud. It has already successfully supported TON validators and plans to expand its services further to meet TON's high compute intensity and network bandwidth needs. Validators in web3 parlance, are participants who help authenticate transactions in a blockchain network.

Tencent Cloud plans to offer a dedicated amount of cloud credits and product discounts, subject to approval, to all projects built on TON. This partnership could yield great rewards if Telegram's mini-app marketplace takes off like its Chinese counterpart.

Learning from WeChat's Playbook

Despite Tencent Cloud not being TON's exclusive cloud provider, the partners benefit from their synergies. In their view, mini app developers from WeChat currently cTencent's cloud service will start building on TON.

However, it needs to be clarified how many developers building for WeChat's China users can address the diverse needs of Telegram's international community. While mobile game creators might have the most transferrable skills, many developers must familiarize themselves with the app before devising meaningful applications.

Decentralized Payments Network: A Game Changer

With a decentralized payments network, Telegram's mini-app ecosystem has the potential to reach a broader spectrum of users around the world. While WeChat made its in-house payments system the default option, Telegram has integrated with 20 payment solutions and takes no commission through its Bot Payments API.

Telegram recently welcomed a self-custodial wallet developed by The Open Platform (TOP) using the TON blockchain. This could bring a wide range of transaction scenarios to regions where centralized online payments aren't available.

Watching how Telegram and TON learn from WeChat's success and how a mini-app platform with a decentralized twist unfolds will be fascinating.