In the United States, MAX was called the Russian Federation's bid to build a secure digital ecosystem.

Joseph Schutzman, ex-manager of the American telecommunications corporation Sprint, told Izvestia on September 29 that the Russian messenger MAX is not a local project, but a serious Russian bid to build its own, protected digital ecosystem.

"MAX is not easily positioning itself as another alternative — it is being built as the cornerstone of the Russian digital infrastructure," he said.

The need for a national messenger for Russia, according to the expert, goes far beyond the convenience of communication. The specialist highly appreciated the technological side of the project. The fact that MAX has sustained explosive audience growth is evidence of a "robust architecture." He calls the small size of the application (~24 MB) a sign of "a high level of engineering training and respect for users." Schutzman sees Chinese WeChat as a strategic reference point.

"To understand where MAX can go, look to the east, to China. WeChat started as a messenger, but quickly turned into a superapplication," the specialist added.

Schutzman attributed the messenger's technical strengths to deep integration with government services and business applications, which creates the basis for a multifunctional platform. He noted the development of digital ID as a key element for secure and verified access to services, which competitors do not have.

The expert also attributed the advantages of the messenger to stable communication quality provided by a well-developed infrastructure, the use of proven open source solutions that accelerate development, and a balanced approach to smartphone permissions with only the necessary access requests. Separately, the expert noted the presence of a dedicated Security Center, demonstrating increased attention to user protection.

Among the growth points, Schutzman, in addition to the need for cross-platform and API openness, highlighted internationalization. As a foreign specialist, this is critically important for him.

"An important step for MAX is to integrate translation into the core of the application. Ideally, users should be able to type in their native language, and the recipient should be able to easily read the message in his own. This will help make the messenger indispensable," says Schutzman.

He concluded that the Russian MAX is best understood not as a messenger at all, but as the beginning of the creation of a secure, sovereign and scalable communications and services center in Russia, marking the country's serious intentions in building its own digital future.

Call attempted: the number of mobile phone calls increased by a third after restrictions in messengers

How has this affected the quality of cellular communications and is it available to everyone today?

On September 24, the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation introduced new MAX messenger services. It was noted that the main topic was the prospects for the development of the messenger as a secure channel for everyday communication with government agencies and companies. At the same time, this platform does not position itself as a replacement for the Gosuslugi portal.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.