Meet the Team
PigeonChat is built by a small, passionate team of engineers, designers, and communicators who believe private messaging should be both secure and delightful. Get to know the people behind the app.
Leadership
The vision and direction behind PigeonChat.
Nizar Hezhaz
CEO & Founder
Nizar founded PigeonChat with a bold vision: to build a messaging platform that proves privacy and fun are not mutually exclusive. With a background in software engineering and product strategy, he spent years studying the gaps in existing messaging apps before launching PigeonChat. His leadership philosophy centres on user trust — every product decision starts with the question, 'Does this respect our users?' Under his guidance, PigeonChat has grown from a side project into a thriving platform used by people across the globe. When he is not steering the company, Nizar enjoys exploring new cities, mentoring aspiring founders, and debating the future of decentralised technology.
Marketing & Content
The creative minds telling the PigeonChat story and growing the community.
Lena Petrova
Content Lead & Blog Author
Lena is the voice behind the PigeonChat blog. With a degree in Communications from Sofia University and over eight years of experience in UX writing and content strategy, she crafts every article with a focus on clarity, warmth, and SEO precision. Before joining PigeonChat, Lena led content teams at two European tech startups, where she developed a reputation for turning complex technical topics into engaging, reader-friendly stories. She is passionate about digital privacy education and believes everyone deserves to understand how their data is used — without needing a computer science degree to do so.
Milena Kovačević
Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)
Milena drives PigeonChat's brand strategy and growth with infectious energy and sharp analytical thinking. Born in Belgrade and educated at the University of Zagreb with a Master's in Digital Marketing, she brings over a decade of experience scaling consumer tech brands across Eastern Europe and beyond. Before PigeonChat, Milena served as VP of Marketing at a leading fintech startup, where she tripled user acquisition in under two years. She is a firm believer that great marketing tells the truth — and at PigeonChat, the truth is a compelling story. Milena is also an avid rock climber and amateur photographer.
Engineering
The technical team that builds, secures, and scales PigeonChat every day. Together, they bring over 30 years of combined experience in distributed systems, encryption, full-stack development, and cloud infrastructure. They share a common philosophy: write clean code, protect user privacy at every layer, and ship features that make people smile.
Andrei Volkov
VP of Engineering
Andrei leads PigeonChat's engineering team with a calm, methodical approach that belies his passion for elegant code. With a Master's in Computer Science from the Czech Technical University in Prague and twelve years of experience building distributed systems, he architects the infrastructure that keeps millions of messages flowing securely every day. Before PigeonChat, Andrei held senior engineering roles at a major European cloud provider and contributed to several open-source encryption libraries. He is the driving force behind PigeonChat's zero-knowledge architecture and forward secrecy implementation.
Katarina Novak
Senior Full-Stack Developer
Katarina is the creative force behind many of PigeonChat's most beloved features, including the sticker system and stories. With a background in both design and engineering — she holds degrees in Graphic Design and Software Engineering from the University of Ljubljana — Katarina bridges the gap between beautiful interfaces and robust code. She joined PigeonChat as its third engineer and has been instrumental in shaping the app's warm, intuitive user experience. In her spare time, she contributes to open-source UI frameworks and teaches coding workshops for young women.
Dmitri Sokolov
Backend Engineer & DevOps
Dmitri keeps PigeonChat running smoothly behind the scenes. Specialising in backend systems, database optimisation, and cloud infrastructure, he ensures that messages are delivered instantly and reliably — no matter the scale. A graduate of Tallinn University of Technology with a focus on cybersecurity, Dmitri brings deep expertise in secure system design. Before joining PigeonChat, he spent six years at a cybersecurity firm, where he developed intrusion detection systems for enterprise clients. Dmitri is also PigeonChat's unofficial coffee connoisseur and the office's most enthusiastic table tennis player.
Want to Join the Flock?
We are always looking for talented people who care about privacy, great design, and building products that matter. If that sounds like you, we would love to hear from you.
Get in Touch