The Story of TON Messenger
~10-minute read

This week, we'd like to share a brief story about how we came to create this project.

A long time ago, we discovered Telegram. Unfortunately, we can't recall exactly when that happened, but it was more than six years ago. After installing it, we were pleasantly surprised by how well-optimized the app was. It ran smoothly even on weaker devices. We were greeted by animated stickers, which in other apps would have caused noticeable delays.

Private, secure, fast, open, free, powerful - everything lived up to its promise. What attracted us most was that Telegram's source code was open, unlike most other messengers.

But that was before Telegram started to drift away from its original principles. A paid subscription appeared. Ads were introduced.
Like most users, we supported these changes - we're sure it wasn't an easy decision for the team, and they handled it well. But since then, things have slowly started to change for the worse.

At that time, we became interested in creating a modified Telegram client. Still, we didn't see much real need for users. Those were narrow, specialized solutions that never went public.

Years later, around 2023–2024, the idea of building our own messenger resurfaced. But it didn't differ much from Telegram back then, so we shelved it for the time being.

Meanwhile, scams kept spreading. Fraudsters found new ways to deceive people, and with each new update, they saw new opportunities. This trend continues to this day. Sadly, many of them succeed - which only encourages them to reinvest stolen resources into even more elaborate schemes.

With such a massive wave of malicious activity, Telegram simply couldn't keep up with processing millions of abuse reports - some of which were sent by the scammers themselves to confuse moderators.

In 2024–2025, we returned to the idea of building a messenger - this time with a clearer understanding of what it should be.
We analyzed modern technologies and user needs to identify key weaknesses. But we still faced one major problem familiar to many early-stage projects: growth.

We weren't public figures, had no blog, and hadn't built an audience. Buying arrogant, intrusive ads wasn't an option either.
So, we turned to community-driven ways of growing.

After creating a Telegram account, we immediately ran into its moderation limits. The automated system mistakenly froze our account after a large group's admin banned us.
Eventually, Telegram's support team reviewed our appeal and unblocked the account within a day. We understand how such algorithms work - but the experience itself leaves a bitter aftertaste.

Telegram is doing its best to fight both scammers and censorship. Without insight into its internal processes, we can't judge its actions. Everything written here reflects only our personal experience - one you might have faced yourself.

Telegram used to be open and free. Today, it's increasingly overrun by scammers chasing easy profit.
In their fight against fraud, ordinary users have begun charging for private messaging.
Lawlessness led to chaos - and chaos undermined the fundamental principle of communication.

Now, if you want to talk, you need money. You pay simply to prove you're not a bot.

That approach may work for influencers, but not for everyday people. The fact remains: it's not the best solution.
And due to its very structure, Telegram cannot adopt another one.

To tackle scammers and bots, we decided to create TON Messenger, while also building in the features users love most.
In August 2025, we began development despite the challenges of organic growth. We rely on community support and have no interest in building corporate walls.