Signal not only boasts of being one of the safest instant messaging applications on the planet, it is also chosen by cybersecurity gurus such as Edward Snowden. However, now according to the latest reports, the ultra-secure instant messaging application Signal just got a hefty donation of $50 million from the co-founder WhatsApp.
Signal Gets A $50 Million Donation From WhatsApp Co-Founder
Signal not only boasts of being one of the safest instant messaging applications on the planet, it is also chosen by cybersecurity gurus such as Edward Snowden. Still in the background, eclipsed by other platforms such as WhatsApp or Telegram, Signal’s popularity has increased over the years, accumulating several million active users around the world.
Now, Signal has presented its own foundation, the Signal Foundation, with the aim of continuing to grow as a platform. And the truth is that it could not have started better, since Brian Acton, one of the co-founders of WhatsApp who left the company in 2017, will join the ranks of Signal as CEO, after donating nothing less than 50 million dollars to the initiative.
The Signal Foundation is born with Brian Acton as CEO
As we told you at the time, Signal uses an end-to-end encryption system developed by the company itself. This technology has become, over the years, one of the most used in the messaging industry, and today can be found on platforms such as Facebook Messenger, Telegram, WhatsApp, or Google Allo.
However, since its inception, Signal has been a non-profit organization, which was maintained through donations. The lack of income forced the company to maintain a small team of developers, which has never exceeded 7 members.
That is why today the Signal Foundation is born, a non-profit organization created and supported by Brian Acton, the co-founder of WhatsApp, who has laid the first stone in this tower in the form of a 50 million dollar donation.
In this way, it is not only intended to boost Signal’s growth as a messaging platform, but the arrival of Acton to the company as CEO eliminates the uncertainty that many users demonstrated with respect to the project as there is no defined internal structure. Brian Acton himself pointed out the following:-
“Moxie – Signal developer – and I share the belief that the best way to ensure the universal availability of high-security and low-cost communications services like Signal is to do it through a foundation structure free of the inherent limitations of a company for profit … Signal has always been a collaborative project with a strong community, and we will continue to learn from our users and experience together.”
When leaving Facebook in September 2017, Acton commented that he felt “lucky” to have the flexibility to take new risks and focus on what he really loves, non-profit activities related to technology and communications.
In the short term, the arrival of Acton to the Signal Foundation as president, together with the donation provided, should not imply too many changes for users, beyond a greater pace in terms of the arrival of new features to the application, you simply can download it totally for free on Google Play.
So, what do you think about this? Simply share all your views and thoughts in the comment section below.
