In that regard, what are other apps like Briar?
The premise is:
> Briar is a messaging app designed for activists, journalists, and anyone else who needs a safe, easy and robust way to communicate. Unlike traditional messaging apps, Briar doesn’t rely on a central server - messages are synchronized directly between the users' devices. If the internet’s down, Briar can sync via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, keeping the information flowing in a crisis. If the internet’s up, Briar can sync via the Tor network, protecting users and their relationships from surveillance
It sounds similar to Scuttlebutt https://scuttlebutt.nz/
What sets them apart is scuttlebutt's special concept of how it works as a social network, dissimilar to Briar.
Briar was built for P2P from the ground up, so presumably they planned this better.
This isn't a criticism of matrix. Matrix is great and I use it everyday but gotta give credit where its due.
I see no reason to think P2P isn't a goal of Matrix either; the reason it's not P2P now is that federation was easier, but the long-term game certainly looks to be P2P with work on cryptographic, portable identities and Bluetooth mesh networking in the form of Pinecone. I've also seen arathorn confirm this on HN.
I hope this will change with p2p matrix...
It took me longer than I care to admit before I realized Briar is just a messaging app.