Short answers.
Most people arrive here with one specific thing they need to fix, so the answers are short on purpose. If yours isn’t here, the last one tells you how to reach me.
Yes. Genco is live on Android as a small private release. Anyone can download the app, but the server will not create an account without a valid invitation, so downloading and joining are two separate things.
From someone already on Genco. A member gives you a six-character code. It works once and expires after two days. There is no public signup.
They’re your account. Genco doesn’t use a phone number or email address as your identity. Your phone generates a standard twelve-word recovery phrase when you join, and derives your keys from it. The words never leave your device, so the server never sees them.
Anyone who has those words has your account.
No. Messages are end-to-end encrypted on your phone before they leave it, using Matrix’s encryption rather than anything home-made. The server delivers them but doesn’t hold the keys to read them.
The server can still see who sent a message, who it was sent to, when it was sent and how large it was.
Private doesn’t mean invisible.
Genco doesn’t need a phone number, an email address or an OTP to create your account. Your identity is derived on your phone from your twelve words.
The server can see who you message, when you message them and how much data is being sent.
I don’t claim that the server sees nothing. I claim that it can’t read your conversations.
Install Genco on the new phone and choose “I have my twelve words.” Entering them derives the same identity again, so your account comes back. There are no SMS codes to wait for. Your chats, people and keys come back with it.
Then the account is gone. That’s intentional. Genco doesn’t keep a copy that can be used to recover it. Ask for a new invite and start again.
They’re a one-time check that the other end is really the person you’re talking to. The first time you chat with someone, both phones show the same three pictures. Compare them. If they match, you’ve confirmed the connection.
Android’s battery settings can put Genco to sleep. In Settings → Apps → Genco → Battery, choose Unrestricted. The exact wording varies slightly by phone.
Not yet. Genco is distributed directly for now and you install the APK yourself. Android warns you when you install from outside the store. That’s expected, not a sign something is wrong.
Not yet. Genco is Android only for now. An iPhone version is planned.
Genco’s support desk is still being built. For now, email hello@genco.chat and I’ll help you out.