Sunbird, the iMessage app that powered Nothing Chats, is shutting down. And the way it happened is a bit . odd.
What was supposed to be an iMessage redeemer for Android smartphone users has quickly been consumed in a chaos of security and utter negligence. Merely days after the Nothing Chats app was removed from the Play Store, the tech at its foundation provided by Sunbird is also taking an unspecified leave, intensifying suspicions of something being seriously wrong.
Sunbird appeared on our radar late last year, promising blue bubbles for Android-to-iPhone messages. It also promised to bundle all messaging apps into a single cluster, somewhat like Beeper. Nothing adopted the Sunbird tech, bundled it into its own app for the Nothing Phone 2, and launched it with an ambitious video. “Sorry, Tim.” That’s the message Nothing CEO Carl Pei sent.
Bring on the blue bubbles.
We believe in windows, not walls. If messaging services are dividing phone users, then we want to break those barriers down.
So… we’ve developed iMessage compatibility for your Phone (2). pic.twitter.com/kArTGfXlQO
— Nothing (@nothing) November 14, 2023
Over the weekend, I noticed that the Sunbird app’s Google Play Store listing returned a blank page. I originally thought it was unavailable due to some geographic restrictions. The company made no public announcement regarding the same, except notifying members in the Sunbird Discord channel.
