Rather than spreading the Proton team's focus between even more products, have you tried looking at Wire? (https://wire.com). It's an open source, end to end encrypted messenger app with high quality audio and video calls.

encrypted chat service

Wickr style chat function. Like Messenger and Gmail but with a self destruct option and Telegram style encryption.

Chat is an extremely saturated space, and I can't imagine any reason to implement yet-another insulated chat system.

If ProtonChat were to be a Proton owned and operated matrix (https://matrix.org) server, though, there'd be a solid foundation for chat with strong privacy (like e2e encrypted rooms), and it'd mean Proton is helping an open-source effort while helping itself.

That, and matrix also provides the potential to take chat right up to audio/video calls and a Google Hangouts type featureset.

Don't reinvent the wheel... Just provide an XMPP based service with OMEMO.

Hi, ProtonMail is a great service. Have you considered a messaging app too? ie an alternative to Whatsapp, Viber, Messenger etc which, like ProtonMail, respects an individual's privacy and has no connecting to the likes of Google and Facebook.

Oh god yes please!!

This would be totally awesome, if ever implemented. Sometimes it's easier to shoot a quick chat than email back and forth. Otherwise Protonmail is the shiiiiiznit!

Yes please, I came here to suggest this myself. Eventually a secure chat app like FB messenger would be super sweet. I don't like how telegram/signal/etc require you to give them your phone #

No need to merge Protonmail with a messenger application !
We only need a secure, quick and light email service. Not a big and slow service full of features we don't use.

Regarding the messengers applications, after trying several of them (telegram, whatsapp, etc.), in my opinion, Threema is the best in term of privacy, speed, reliability, and sound quality (call). AND it can be installed on a tablet (no phone number needed!). This is a winner feature!

There is a ‚perfect secure‘ Messenger out there already. Swiss-based and in contrast to signal completly anonymous..
please have a look at Threema.

What's wrong it Signal / Telegram / Wickr, and allow ProtonMail to focus on services where there doesn't already exist a good zero knowledge service?

and Video Calls Too

What if you merged with Signal? I know they'd have to agree but it would certainly be great to have the best encrypted messenger and the best encrypted email working together as one. All while being open-source, transparent and in the public interest. :)

Need to be able to chat similar to Google Hangouts with other proton mail account holders

Would love to see XMPP supported. It's one of the main reasons I, and probably many others, have not completely migrated over from services such as riseup.

please make this happen......

Guys.. You're thinking that the chat will have to be in ProtonMail. They can separate it into a seperate app/website like they did ProtonVPN! You don't have to use ProtonVPN if you don't want to! It would be great to have a secure, encrypted messaging platform. It doesn't need any of the fluff that other messaging/social networks have like stories etc. Just a simple contact to contact messenger. ProtonMail, if you're looking at this, contact me if you want input.

it´s planned and you could just use signal or threema or wikr... the problem is that there are already a lot of messengers with not many people to use them. and since there are not many people on them, new people won´t use it over whatsapp. more secure messengers won´t fix that problem.

Secure instant messaging between Proton Mail users only within Proton Mail or with a Smart Phone without a ton of permissions needed between Proton Mail users only.