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This Week in Startups

Beeper's fight to break Apple's stronghold on messaging with Eric Migicovsky | E1892

Feb 5, 2024
Eric Migicovsky, CEO of Beeper and founder of Pebble, shares insights on his mission to create a universal chat app. He discusses how Apple’s stronghold on iMessage limits user freedom and interoperability. Migicovsky reveals the challenges faced after Beeper Mini's brief launch and its quick user adoption. The conversation dives into the importance of breaking monopolistic practices in tech and highlights the innovative solutions being developed to improve cross-platform messaging.
49:57

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Beeper aims to create a universal chat app that allows users to communicate with anyone on any chat network, eliminating the need for multiple chat apps.
  • Apple's control over iMessage creates limitations for users, including difficulties in message encryption, switching to Android, and maintaining compatibility within iPhone user groups.

Deep dives

The Growing Fight Against Apple's App Store Practices

Startups and larger companies are pushing back against Apple's app store rules and fees. The podcast highlights notable examples, including a smartwatch company winning a patent dispute against Apple, Epic Games' CEO challenging app store fees, and Spotify's complaint leading to an EU investigation. The podcast also features an interview with the CEO of Beeper, a startup that faced Apple's restrictions when launching an Android app to improve iMessage functionality. The discussion delves into the broader issue of Apple's control over its ecosystem, the impact on developers, and the need for more open standards and interoperability.

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