The new Beeper app combines all of Automattic’s messaging systems

Automattic-owned Beeper has announced a new beta update to its desktop and iOS apps to finally merge its service with Texts, which Automattic acquired in 2023. You can download the desktop version or see instructions for using the iOS beta in TestFlight by going to this page.

Beeper says the new desktop version is built “on the foundations of the Texts desktop app,” while it built the iOS app “from scratch.” In a post on X, Texts.com founder and Beeper cofounder Kishan Bagaria called it “the next-gen texts app, now rebranded as beeper.” Both are universal messaging services that can connect to and let you message people from several platforms, including WhatsApp, Instagram, Slack, and others.

Things have been quiet for Beeper since it gave up its fight to make iMessage work on Android phones and sold to Automattic, which also owns platforms like WordPress.com and Tumblr.

Beeper isn’t done with iMessage, as Bagaria also says the company plans to support Apple’s protocol in the macOS version of the app. Beeper promises other future updates, including messages being encrypted on your device instead of Beeper’s servers, and support for “multiple accounts for a single network.”