What is Katipo?

Katipo is an http alternative for creating, sharing, hosting, browsing and using apps, games, and websites.

What does "http alternative" mean?

"http://" stands for "HyperText Transfer Protocol" , and it forms the backbone of a collection of technologies that we use to browse the web and communicate over the internet every day.

"ktp://" is an alternative, short for "katipo transfer protocol". It is actually an alternative to https, as all traffic sent over a katipo network is always secure and encrypted.

On the standard web, you use Chrome or Safari or similar to browse html sites and javascript apps over http/s, while on the Katipo web, you use Koru Browser to browse tui sites and apps over ktp.

Native apps can also be built on top of the Katipo platform, like Waraki Music Player.

Why do we need an alternative to http?

The web technologies we use have become much larger and more complex over time, which has made it harder to make apps and to keep them running.

More than this, the web is now less accessible than it used to be. It is now very difficult for new potential app developers to find a way into the ecosystem or to make any impact. It is getting harder to learn how to make apps, we have resorted to using AI to make them for us, and that reliance is making things even worse.

Plenty of projects still do require the features inherent to such an established platform. The web isn't going anywhere.

But very often a simpler, smaller solution could suffice. Katipo can open up web development to a wider range of people. It can help more developers to create meaningful and useful apps that are then easier to share and maintain.

There are many different http web browsers, but internally they are different implementations of the same engine. Katipo is a different web engine design, and it could be one of many. If one person can make this, we could and should have many different small alternative web platforms to chose from, each with their own specialties.

Web browsers/protocols and multiplayer game engines are very similar technical problems.

We have a decent range of bespoke little game engines, so why are we limiting ourselves to one giant web engine?

Who is making this and why?

Katipo, Koru, Waraki and Tui are totally free, open source, released into the public domain.

Everything here is made without the use of or support for AI.

Katipo is being made by an experienced solo game developer as a passion project. It is being made for many reasons, but mostly out of a frustration with the status quo, and a feeling of responsibility to make things better.

Technology's purpose should be to help people, not exploit them. That is at Katipo's core, and that is why it is free and open source.

What is the current status of this project?

As of June 2026, this website has just been created, Dave is more or less working on this alone. This is a massive project and there are a lot of moving parts, but it is coming together quickly now.

None of the apps have yet been fully released. Tui works really well and is nearing feature completion. Katipo has a solid core, but is missing features. There are functioning alpha builds of the Katipo hosting tools, and both Koru and Waraki Music Player have alpha builds running on a number of platforms.

The current focus is to release a public beta of the Waraki Music Player standalone cross platform app, which will then be followed by a public beta of Koru. Then the goal is to get these and the Katipo network and Tui language all to 1.0.

How do I get involved?

If you see any (AI-free) way you can help, whether it be with coding, design, documentation, promotion, or anything at all, please get in touch.

There are currently no Katipo specific communities or social media accounts. These will be created within Katipo in time, but for now, you can follow Dave's personal accounts, have a look at or contribute to the github repositories, or just send Dave an email.

Katipo on github
Dave on bluesky
Dave on mastodon
email Dave