Chert
API for sending and receiving real iMessages at scale
- Category
- Developer Tools
- Launched
- May 25, 2026
- Stage
- Seed
- Founder
- garygao
- Website
- trychert.com
Chert provides a REST API and webhooks for sending and receiving real iMessages, similar to how Twilio provides APIs for SMS. It enables businesses to integrate iMessage into their applications, supporting blue bubble messaging, typing indicators, tapbacks, group chats, attachments, and SMS/RCS fallback. The platform handles deliverability, identity rotation, and compliance, allowing developers to build conversational AI, customer support, and outbound sales workflows on iMessage.
Positioning
Chert is a short, punchy name that is easy to remember and type, though it doesn't directly suggest messaging. The tagline "iMessage infrastructure" clearly positions it as a B2B API service, drawing a direct comparison to Twilio. The brand emphasizes reliability and developer-friendliness, with a clean, modern website that showcases the blue-bubble UX.
Discovered via
- Hacker News Launch posts · · Launch HN: Chert (YC P26) – Twilio for iMessage