Telegram launched in August 2013, starting on iOS with an Android release following within weeks. It has been running continuously since.
The turns that shaped it
| Year | What changed |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Launch, with Secret Chats and cloud sync from the start |
| 2014 | Desktop clients and the first large groups |
| 2015 | Channels, for broadcasting to an unlimited audience, and the Bot API |
| 2016 | Inline bots, so bots work inside any chat |
| 2017 onward | Voice and video calls, supergroups, granular admin tools |
| 2021 | Telegram Premium and the first advertising, confined to public channels |
| 2022 onward | Topics, Stars, Mini Apps, and the wider platform around them |
What has stayed constant
- Cloud first. Messages follow the account, not the handset. This was unusual at launch and is still the feature people notice when switching phones.
- Open clients. The applications have been published as source throughout.
- An open platform. Bots, stickers and now Mini Apps are built by anyone, not curated by a single vendor.
The result is a service past its first decade with over a billion active users, which is the part that matters when judging longevity: it has been through several eras of mobile messaging without changing what it fundamentally is.
Updated