General InformationDamus (operating as Damus Nostr, Inc.) is the leading iOS/Android/desktop client for the open Nostr protocol, founded in 2022 by William Casarin with a small open-source team of roughly 1–10 core contributors.
Funding & FinancialsDamus is not traditionally VC-backed; it has received grant funding from OpenSats (including a renewed grant in 2025) and early support from Jack Dorsey, who donated ~14 BTC (~$245,000) to the broader Nostr ecosystem in 2022.
Leadership & TeamWilliam Casarin (alias jb55), a Bitcoin Core and Lightning Network developer, is the founder and lead developer of Damus and its companion desktop client Notedeck.
Recent ActivityIn late November 2024, Damus launched the Notedeck Alpha — a Rust-based, multi-column desktop client for Linux, macOS, and Windows — initially shipped to Damus Purple subscribers as a major expansion beyond iOS.