Telegram: How to Counter-Attack | The Generalist

Contests can be an effective recruiting method. Few companies seem to have as many talented engineers as Telegram. Part of its success rests on its use of competitions. The company frequently offers prizes for product improvements, hiring the most talented entrants.

It has built a narrative around its security bonafides. Though Telegram does encrypt messages, most are not truly, completely private. That hasn't seemed to hurt the company's rhetoric, though. It has done a stellar job of counter-positioning itself.

Telegram is the fastest-growing app in the world. At least, by some measures. A 2021 report suggested that no major app grew monthly active users more than the messaging service. It now boasts around 600 million users.

It still hasn't found a business model. Telegram has supported payments since 2017 and has recently experimented with advertisements. Neither has caught fire so far. To reach "default alive" status, Durov's team may look for inspiration from WeChat and others.

Going crypto has its risks. An ICO in 2018 brought $1.7 billion into Telegram's coffers. Unfortunately for founder Pavel Durov, the SEC concluded it constituted an unregistered sale of securities. The debacle distracted Telegram's development and prompted unusual financial agreements.