Max

AppWizard
July 31, 2026
Major mobile carriers in Russia, including MTS, MegaFon, Beeline, and T2, have agreed to zero-rate data usage for the domestic Max messenger, effective August 1. This initiative aims to promote the state-approved platform and discourage the use of foreign messaging apps. Subscribers will have free access to voice calls, messaging, file transfers, and other services within the Max app. Since its launch in spring 2025, Max has been integrated into state digital services and mandated to be pre-installed on all smartphones sold in Russia, resulting in nearly 70 million daily active users. This announcement follows EU sanctions against VK, the app's developer, due to allegations of its connections with the Russian FSB and surveillance capabilities, leading to the removal of VK and Max from Apple and Google app stores.
AppWizard
July 31, 2026
Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, was designated as a "terrorist" and "extremist" by Russia's FSB on July 29, ahead of parliamentary elections in September, due to claims that Ukrainian intelligence services extensively use Telegram. Durov, who has dual citizenship in France and the UAE, publicly expressed defiance against this classification by sharing content emphasizing "freedom of expression." This designation aligns him legally with Aleksei Navalny, though it does not extend to the Telegram platform itself. Telegram remains popular in Russia despite regulatory challenges and has been used by Russian intelligence services. Durov has resisted government pressure to allow access to the app's security infrastructure. The FSB is attempting to tighten control over Telegram, but its significance for political mobilization complicates these efforts. Additionally, Durov faces legal threats in Europe related to content moderation on Telegram.
AppWizard
July 29, 2026
The Federal Security Service (FSB) of Russia has charged Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, with facilitating terrorist activities and has issued an international warrant for his arrest. The charges are based on Telegram's alleged failure to remove content used by Ukrainian special services and terrorist organizations linked to sabotage, terrorism, mass killings, and cyber-fraud operations within Russia. Telegram has over 1 billion users and is a key communication tool during the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Durov, who previously founded VKontakte, has lived abroad since 2014 and holds Emirati and French citizenship. He is also under investigation by French authorities for insufficiently addressing criminal activity on Telegram and not cooperating with law enforcement. Durov denies any wrongdoing.
Tech Optimizer
July 29, 2026
EDB Postgres AI is a pioneering solution that integrates intelligence and data on a unified sovereign foundation, eliminating the need for ETL processes, data duplication, and separate vector stores. Independent benchmarks show that EDB Postgres AI outperforms competing platforms in speed, accuracy, and cost-effectiveness. A study by McKnight Consulting Group indicates that EDB Postgres AI excels in key performance metrics, including query latency, accuracy, cost, and data freshness, outperforming specialized vector databases and other managed Postgres platforms. EDB Postgres AI achieves median query latencies of 50 milliseconds at a scale of 50 million vectors, making it 80x faster than Databricks, 21x faster than MongoDB Atlas, and up to 2x faster than alternatives like Aurora and Crunchy Bridge. It also delivers the highest recall rates for core vector searches, surpassing competitors like MongoDB and Databricks. In tests involving concurrent retrievals, EDB Postgres AI completed a three-arm agent loop in 27 milliseconds, significantly faster than other platforms. In terms of cost efficiency, EDB Postgres AI offers 76x better price performance than Databricks, 34x better than MongoDB, and 23%–28% better than the nearest managed Postgres competitors when considering query speed. The architecture of EDB Postgres AI allows for the integration of vector, filtered, and full-text retrieval in a single query path, ensuring real-time data access and eliminating the need for separate systems.
AppWizard
July 25, 2026
The combined audience of foreign messaging applications in Russia increased by 26% in the second quarter of 2026. The Turkish app BiP experienced a 120% increase in unique users, totaling 4.3 million, while KakaoTalk grew by 80%, reaching nearly 1.3 million users. The American app imo remains the leader with 12.2 million users, but its growth was only 1% in the same quarter. Major telecom companies like MegaFon reported a 20% decline in imo usage among their subscribers. Telegram had a monthly audience of 75.7 million, Max messenger had 86.2 million, and WhatsApp had 63.5 million users. Telegram and WhatsApp have faced significant restrictions, leading to a gradual decline in their audience. After calls on Telegram and WhatsApp were banned in August 2025, users began exploring alternative messaging applications, contributing to the rise of lesser-known services.
AppWizard
July 24, 2026
Becoming a member of GB MAX provides access to exclusive insights and connections within the global B2B leadership community in gaming, entertainment, and technology, along with a VIP ticket to the GamesBeat Next event on November 2-3 in San Francisco. Playstrom, a Belarus-based game studio, has achieved over 1.5 billion downloads across more than 20 mobile titles and is transitioning into PC game development. In 2026, they will launch Shipping Store Simulator 2037, their first dedicated PC title. Playstrom has paused mobile game projects to focus on this PC title, which is part of a strategic exploration of their strengths in PC development. The studio's PC development arm was initially established for research and development, and they plan to create mobile adaptations of successful PC titles. The demo for Shipping Store Simulator 2037 received a Very Positive rating on Steam, and SayGames plans to invest in influencer campaigns and user acquisition strategies to promote the game.
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