Block has launched Buzz, a free open-source platform where employees and AI agents collaborate in a unified space. This was announced by the fintech company's CEO, Jack Dorsey.
we're launching BUZZ!
a new groupchat platform for teams of people and agents of all sizes, built to reduce our dependency on slack and github. model-agnostic, decentralized, self-sovereign, and open source. 🐝https://t.co/8IaMVeTQNo
— jack (@jack) July 21, 2026
The service is built on the open Nostr protocol and integrates team chats, direct messaging, voice communication, file sharing, code repositories, and automated workflows.
Nostr is an open protocol for transmitting signed messages across a network of relay servers. Users manage their cryptographic keys independently, rather than receiving identity from a centralized platform.
Dorsey described Buzz as a platform for teams of people and agents of any size, aimed at reducing Block's reliance on Slack and GitHub. However, the current version is still in early stages: mobile apps are not ready, and some features for code management and automation are still under development.
AI Agents Have Separate Accounts
In Buzz, agents are not just chatbots responding to commands. Each agent receives a distinct cryptographic identity, access rights, and a history of actions.
An agent can be added to a channel just like an employee. It can participate in discussions, access project history, work with repositories, review code, and initiate permitted automated processes. Messages, reactions, changes, results, and confirmations are marked as signed events, allowing users to distinguish between actions taken by humans and those executed by specific agents.
Access rights can be configured separately. For example, an agent can be allowed to read selected channels and review code without access to the entire workspace or the company's internal infrastructure. Buzz is not tied to a single language model or agent system and supports Claude Code from Anthropic, Codex from OpenAI, as well as Block's own framework, Goose.
Connection is facilitated through the Agent Client Protocol (ACP)—an open protocol for AI agents to interact with code editors, development environments, and available tools. There is also the option to integrate custom models and systems.
One Workspace Relies on a Single Relay
The claimed decentralization of Buzz has its limitations. In the current architecture, each workspace uses a single relay, referred to in the repository as the sole source of the system's reliable state. This relay manages messages, access rights, repositories, workflows, and the history of a specific community.
Thus, decentralization primarily pertains to key ownership, the open protocol, the ability to choose an operator, and self-hosting the service. However, the internal infrastructure of a given workspace remains centralized around the chosen relay.
One operator can manage multiple separate communities. According to the documentation, their data, search indexes, logs, and workflow states should be stored separately. In self-hosted deployments, organizations control the server and data processing order. Users of the managed version depend on Block's infrastructure.
Some Features Are Still Under Development
The Buzz repository explicitly states that it is an unfinished product. The platform is available as a desktop application for macOS, Windows, and Linux. At the time of the announcement, the latest published release was version 0.4.22.
The platform already includes channels, discussions, direct messaging, search, a shared event log, file sharing, Git repositories, and processes triggered by messages, reactions, schedules, or external events. Mobile apps for iOS and Android are not yet available.
In January 2025, Block introduced an open-source framework for creating AI agents called Goose. These agents can interact with files, browsers, repositories, and other connected tools. According to the company, its engineers have used Goose to automate some tasks in software development.
Buzz aims to integrate such agents with employees, code, decision histories, and workflows in a single environment. However, the company has not disclosed the number of internal users on the platform or its impact on productivity.
In February 2026, it was reported that Block plans to cut up to 10% of its workforce as part of a major restructuring. Later, Dorsey announced that nearly 4,000 employees would lose their jobs, linking the decision to the company's shift towards a "more compact, flat, and AI-oriented" structure.
Following this announcement, Block's shares rose over 20% in after-hours trading, closing at $54.53, with a market capitalization estimated at $31 billion. As of this writing, shares are trading at $80.38.
Source: Yahoo Finance.In March, Block rehired some employees laid off in February. Dorsey stated that while AI may play a significant role in the company's future model, humans will continue to make key business and ethical decisions.
In June, Block implemented the AI tool Builderbot to automate software development. The system is already generating about 15% of the company's total code.
Recall that in July 2025, Dorsey unveiled a beta version of the decentralized messenger Bitchat, which operates via Bluetooth without an internet connection.