TNG26 - Telehash Next Generation

Privacy-first mesh networking for the post-quantum era.

TNG26 is a modern reimagining of the Telehash protocol. The protocol itself is called TNG (Telehash Next Generation), and this repository (TNG26) contains its complete specification and documentation.

Note: TNG26 builds upon the original Telehash protocol. For reference to the original Telehash specification and implementations, see:

• Telehash GitHub Organization
• Telehash Protocol Documentation

Project Goals

1. Privacy-First Communication

Create a networking protocol where privacy is not an afterthought but a fundamental design principle:

• End-to-end encryption by default - Every connection is encrypted; there is no "plaintext mode"
• Minimal metadata leakage - Third parties learn as little as possible about your communications
• No central infrastructure - No servers that can be subpoenaed or compromised
• Self-sovereign identity - Generate your own cryptographic identity without relying on certificate authorities

2. Quantum-Resistant Security

Prepare for the post-quantum computing era:

• Hybrid post-quantum cryptography - ML-KEM (FIPS 203) combined with classical algorithms
• Future-proof cipher suites - Protection against both current and future threats
• Graceful migration path - Support for both classical and post-quantum algorithms

3. Universal Transport Support

Enable secure communication over any network layer:

• Logical transports: QUIC (internet), WebTransport (browsers), Bluetooth LE (mobile/IoT)
• Physical transports: 802.11 (WiFi), 802.15.4 (Zigbee/Thread), LoRa (long-range), 433/915MHz (simple radios)
• Transport-agnostic design - Same security guarantees regardless of underlying network

4. Cross-Platform Compatibility

Run TNG everywhere:

• Servers: High-performance implementations (Python, C++)
• Mobile: Native libraries for iOS and Android
• Browsers: WebTransport-based JavaScript implementation
• Embedded: Minimal footprint for microcontrollers (ARM Cortex-M, ESP32, etc.)
• Constrained IoT: Support for devices with 64-byte MTUs

5. Decentralized Mesh Networking

Build a truly decentralized network:

• Peer-to-peer connections - Direct encrypted links between endpoints
• Private mesh topology - Your view of the network is yours alone
• NAT traversal - Works across network boundaries without central servers
• Multi-path redundancy - Automatic failover and load balancing

6. Developer-Friendly Design

Make secure networking accessible:

• Simple API - Fewer concepts to learn than alternatives
• Comprehensive documentation - Clear specifications and guides
• Reference implementations - Working code to learn from and build upon
• Modern standards - Aligned with 2026 best practices (Noise Protocol, DIDs, CBOR)

Key Features

• 🔒 End-to-end encryption with perfect forward secrecy
• 🌐 Transport agnostic - Works over IP, Bluetooth, LoRa, and more
• 🔐 Post-quantum ready - Hybrid ML-KEM cipher suites
• 🆔 Self-sovereign identity - No certificate authorities required
• 📱 Cross-platform - Servers, mobile, browsers, embedded devices
• 🔗 Mesh networking - Peer-to-peer with NAT traversal
• 📡 Physical layer support - Direct radio communication for IoT
• 🚫 No central infrastructure - Truly decentralized

Use Cases

• IoT Device Mesh Networking - Secure sensor networks over LoRa, Zigbee, WiFi
• Private Messaging - End-to-end encrypted messaging without central servers
• Decentralized Applications - Infrastructure for peer-to-peer apps
• Secure Remote Access - Better than traditional VPNs
• Emergency Communication - Mesh networking when infrastructure fails

Documentation

• Product Overview - High-level introduction and use cases
• Technical Overview - Architecture and specifications

Core Protocol

• Hashname - Cryptographic endpoint identity
• LOB Packets - Packet encoding format
• E3X - End-to-end encrypted exchange
• Cipher Suites - Cryptographic algorithms
• Channels - Multiplexed data streams
• Links - Encrypted connections
• Mesh - Network topology management
• Routing - Packet forwarding and NAT traversal
• Gateway - IP-over-mesh tunneling with entry/exit nodes

Transports

• Transport Overview - Architecture and common interfaces
• Logical: QUIC | WebTransport | Bluetooth LE
• Physical: 802.11 WiFi | 802.15.4 | LoRa | 433/915MHz UART

Project Status

Current Phase: Specification Complete ✅ | Implementation Planned ⏳

This repository contains the complete specification for TNG (Telehash Next Generation), including:

• ✅ Core protocol building blocks (all 9 components specified)
• ✅ Logical transport specifications (QUIC, WebTransport, Bluetooth LE)
• ✅ Physical transport specifications (802.11, 802.15.4, LoRa, 433/915MHz UART)
• ✅ Security and cryptography requirements
• ✅ Gateway specification (IP tunneling, direct exit access, REST client)

Next Steps: Reference implementations and language bindings are planned for Phase 2.

Comparison

Feature	TNG	libp2p	Tor	WireGuard
End-to-end encryption	✓	✓	✓	✓
Post-quantum ready	✓	Partial	✗	✗
Transport agnostic	✓	✓	✗	✗
Embedded support	✓	Limited	✗	Limited
Metadata privacy	✓	Limited	✓	✗
No central infrastructure	✓	✓	✗ (relays)	✗ (server)
Physical layer support	✓	✗	✗	✗
Self-sovereign identity	✓	✓	✓	✗

Contributing

This project is in the documentation and specification phase. Contributions are welcome for:

• Specification improvements and clarifications
• Documentation enhancements
• Reference implementation planning
• Use case documentation

License

See LICENSE file for details.

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Telehash Next Generation - Secure, private, decentralized networking for everyone.