Overview
- The two recently launched apps, Carrier Pidge and Roost, have drawn fresh attention after wide coverage Tuesday and reported quick early growth since their April releases.
- Carrier Pidge routes texts at simulated pigeon speed of about 110 mph and includes a 0.2% chance a message will be lost, with a $0.99 in-app purchase to replace a lost pigeon.
- Roost offers roughly 1,000 virtual animals, including a snail that delivers at about 1 mph, to vary transit time and add playful friction to messages.
- Both apps limit real-time pressure by removing instant read receipts, showing only broad recipient regions and restricting new sends while a message is in transit.
- The trend builds on an existing slow-messaging market such as Slowly and reflects a wider cultural pushback against always-on tech that could change how people manage attention and social expectations, though long-term popularity remains unclear.