{
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  "name": "Telegram",
  "description": "Cloud messaging app for macOS with groups, channels and large file sharing, where only Secret Chats are end-to-end encrypted.",
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  "operatingSystem": "macOS",
  "applicationCategory": "BusinessApplication",
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    "https://github.com/overtake/TelegramSwift"
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  "softwareVersion": "12.10",
  "license": "GPL-2.0",
  "offers": {
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    "price": "0",
    "priceCurrency": "USD"
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    "description": "Cloud messaging app for macOS with groups, channels and large file sharing, where only Secret Chats are end-to-end encrypted.",
    "shortDescription": "Cloud messaging with groups, channels and 2 GB file sharing.",
    "answer": "Telegram is a messaging app built on a cloud model: messages live on Telegram's servers, so every device sees the same history, and only Secret Chats are end-to-end encrypted. Ordinary cloud chats — private and group — use client-server encryption, which means Telegram holds the keys. The service is free with no ads in private chats, and files can be sent up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with the optional Premium subscription. Telegram publishes the source for its client apps, including the Mac client, and offers verifiable builds for iOS and Android, but it does not publish the server code. It suits people who want fast, feature-rich messaging with large groups rather than end-to-end encryption by default.",
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    "platform": [
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    "architecture": [],
    "featured": false,
    "pricing": "freemium",
    "pricingDescription": "Free to use, with no ads in private chats and no subscription fee required. An optional Telegram Premium subscription unlocks extras such as 4 GB uploads; the pages Nuanyue checked do not state its price.",
    "license": "GPL-2.0",
    "currentVersion": "12.10",
    "openSource": true,
    "website": "https://telegram.org/",
    "documentation": "https://telegram.org/faq",
    "github": "https://github.com/overtake/TelegramSwift",
    "appStore": "https://apps.apple.com/us/app/telegram/id747648890?platform=mac",
    "download": "https://osx.telegram.org/updates/Telegram-12.10.282985.app.zip",
    "icon": "/apps/telegram.png",
    "features": [
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      "Secret Chats with end-to-end, device-specific encryption",
      "Private and group chats plus one-to-many broadcast channels",
      "Groups that can hold up to 200,000 members",
      "File sharing up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with Premium",
      "Encryption based on 256-bit AES, 2048-bit RSA and Diffie–Hellman key exchange",
      "Client apps published as open source, with verifiable builds for iOS and Android",
      "Sponsored messages limited to certain public channels rather than private chats"
    ],
    "useCases": [
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      "Sending files larger than the caps other messengers impose",
      "Running a large group or a one-to-many broadcast channel"
    ],
    "formats": [],
    "integrations": [],
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        "text": "Message history is stored in the cloud, so it is available on every signed-in device rather than only on the device that received it.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Secret Chats add a second layer of client-to-client encryption on top of the cloud chat transport.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Files can be sent up to 2 GB each, or 4 GB with a Premium subscription.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
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        "text": "Private messaging carries no ads and needs no subscription, with sponsored messages confined to certain public channels.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Client apps are open source, and iOS and Android builds are verifiable against the published code.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
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        "text": "Cloud chats are encrypted between client and server, not end to end, so Telegram holds the keys to ordinary conversations.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Secret Chats are tied to one device and are excluded from the cloud, so they do not sync to a Mac and a phone at once.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "The server code is not published, and Telegram argues that publishing it would not provide a verifiable security guarantee.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "text": "Verifiable builds cover iOS and Android only, not the desktop clients.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ],
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      "People who want one message history shared across phone and Mac",
      "Users who need to move large files inside a chat"
    ],
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      "Users who need to verify the service end to end, since the server code is not published"
    ],
    "limitations": [
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      "Secret Chats are device-specific and are not part of the cloud, so they do not appear on other devices",
      "The server code is not published, so the service side cannot be independently verified",
      "The Telegram Premium price is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks",
      "Apple Silicon support is not stated in the sources Nuanyue tracks"
    ],
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      "installation": {
        "value": "Direct download from telegram.org; a macOS build is published for desktop.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
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        "value": "Chats live in the cloud and are reachable from any signed-in device, so a newly installed client shows existing history rather than an empty list.",
        "status": "derived",
        "source": "official",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      "systemIntegration": {
        "value": "The desktop client is a packaged app for the same cloud service, so it depends on a connection to Telegram's servers.",
        "status": "editorially-reviewed"
      },
      "appleSilicon": {
        "value": null,
        "status": "unknown"
      }
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    "updates": [],
    "faq": [
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        "question": "Is Telegram end-to-end encrypted?",
        "answer": "Only Secret Chats are. Cloud Chats — both private and group — use server-client encryption and are stored encrypted in Telegram's cloud, which means Telegram can decrypt them. Secret Chats add a client-to-client layer that only the two participants can read.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "Is Telegram free?",
        "answer": "Yes. Telegram states that private messaging is free and will stay free, with no ads in private chats and no subscription fees. An optional Premium subscription adds extras such as 4 GB uploads.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "How large a file can I send on Telegram?",
        "answer": "Up to 2 GB per file. With a Telegram Premium subscription the limit rises to 4 GB per file.",
        "status": "developer-stated",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "question": "Is Telegram's source code available?",
        "answer": "The client apps are open source and Telegram offers verifiable builds for iOS and Android. The server code is not published; Telegram argues that publishing it would not provide a security guarantee, because there is no way to verify the same code is running on the servers.",
        "status": "verified",
        "source": "documentation",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ],
    "relationships": [
      {
        "target": "signal-desktop",
        "type": "alternative",
        "reason": "Both are free messaging apps with published clients, but Signal encrypts messages end to end by default while Telegram's cloud chats do not.",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "target": "element",
        "type": "alternative",
        "reason": "Both offer group messaging and large file transfer, but Element runs on the decentralised Matrix network while Telegram runs on its own centralised cloud.",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "target": "discord",
        "type": "similar",
        "reason": "Both organise communities into persistent groups with channels, though Discord is built around voice and gaming while Telegram is primarily a messenger.",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "target": "wechat",
        "type": "similar",
        "reason": "Both are messaging apps with large group support and a strong presence in Asian markets, but WeChat bundles payments and services while Telegram stays a messenger.",
        "verifiedAt": "2026-10-05T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ],
    "sources": [
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        "id": "telegram:app-store",
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        "url": "https://apps.apple.com/us/app/telegram/id747648890?platform=mac",
        "title": "Telegram on the Mac App Store",
        "trustLevel": "A",
        "accessedAt": null
      },
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        "id": "telegram:official",
        "type": "official_website",
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        "title": "Telegram — official website",
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        "id": "telegram:documentation",
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        "url": "https://github.com/overtake/TelegramSwift",
        "title": "Telegram — source repository",
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        "accessedAt": null
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    "lastUpdated": "2026-10-14T00:00:00.000Z",
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  }
}