what if you didn't know who you were writing to?

Press kit

Everything you need to write about Seabottles without having to ask us for anything. The materials on this page are free for press use, with credit to Seabottles.

What Seabottles is

Seabottles is a place to say what you truly feel and have someone, somewhere, read it. You write it without your name, cast it into the sea like a bottle, and it reaches a few strangers, chosen at random, who can reply. It has no likes, no followers, and no ads: just text. It works in your browser, with nothing to download, at seabottles.org. It's free and only for adults 18 and over.

What if you didn't know who you were writing to?

The story, in five lines

Designer Fernando Debernardi created Seabottles in Argentina in 2011. In 2012, CNN en Español introduced it as “la primera red social anónima del mundo” (“the world's first anonymous social network”). It grew to thousands of messages from across the Spanish-speaking world, then went dark when one person could no longer keep it running. In 2026, its creator rebuilt it from scratch. He didn't know how to code, so he spent months directing artificial intelligence the way you'd direct a team. Today it's sailing again, with real people writing from 20 countries.

Quotable facts, with dates

Current figures were measured from the app's database on September 3, 2026, and are reviewed every two months. Figures from 2011–2012 come from the preserved archive of the original network.

How these two numbers are measured. The reply rate is calculated only for bottles that have spent at least seven days at sea. A bottle cast yesterday can't have failed yet, and counting it would measure the calendar, not the people. Across all bottles still afloat, including this week's, the figure drops to 70%.

Reply time is measured from when the bottle reaches a shore, not from when it's cast. A bottle can spend days waiting for the current to deliver it, and that wait shouldn't count against the person who replies. Measured median: 1.2 hours.

Coverage and verification

The phrase “la primera red social anónima del mundo” (“the world's first anonymous social network”) comes from 2012 press coverage, not from us. It should always be quoted with attribution.

About these links. They all point to each outlet's own site, not to copies we host. The articles from Seabottles' original era, between 2012 and 2015, have been online for more than a decade, and we checked each one on September 3, 2026. Where there's no date, it's because the article doesn't show one, and we'd rather leave it blank than guess.

The original network's archive (16,502 messages, 2011–2012) is preserved and available to journalists for verification on request.

Suggested angles

What Seabottles isn't

It isn't a dating app. It isn't a chat with strangers. It has no paid version that changes the experience. It isn't in the app stores: you just go to seabottles.org.

The creator

Fernando, who looks after Seabottles

Fernando Debernardi is an Argentine designer. He created Seabottles in 2011 and relaunched it in 2026, rebuilding it from the ground up by directing artificial intelligence. It's a real-world case of a non-programmer building a product that's live in production. He lives in Buenos Aires and gives interviews in Spanish.

The Seabottles presentation

Seventeen pages on Seabottles: how it works, what people write, what strangers write back, and where it came from. Data as of October 6, 2026. The presentation is in Spanish.

View the presentation (PDF)

Downloadable images

Free for press use, with credit to Seabottles. Each image downloads on its own, in high quality, with its button. Or get them all in two files: phone screenshots, logo, and portrait (21.9 MB) and computer screenshots and photos (11.5 MB). The notes included in the files are in Spanish.

App screenshots

Twelve screens from the real app, in use, on a phone. The texts you see were written by people, without names, like everything in Seabottles. The app is shown in Spanish.

On a computer

Eight screens from the real app on a computer: the same app, with the world always in view. The app is shown in Spanish.

Photos of the app in use

Seabottles on a phone and on a computer, in everyday settings.

The logo

Transparent PNGs. Please don’t recolor it, split “Sea” from “bottles.”, or add effects.

The portrait

Fernando Debernardi, Seabottles’ creator.

If you need an image that isn't here (another screen, another size, another crop), just ask by email and we'll send it.

Questions journalists often ask

Doesn't anonymity lead to abuse?
It's the opposite of what you'd expect. An aggressive message needs a stage: an audience, numbers, someone you know to hurt. On Seabottles you write to a stranger, alone, with no one watching. There's automated and human moderation, one-tap reporting even without an account, and zero tolerance when it comes to minors. In the original era, fewer than 2% of bottles were ever reported.
How is age verified?
Everyone enters their year of birth on the way in, and anyone can flag a possible minor right away. A flag limits the account instantly while a person reviews it. If it's confirmed, the account is closed and its data is deleted.
How is it funded?
It has no funding. One person keeps it running, with a page for voluntary contributions that come with no rewards. No ads, no data sales, and no paid plans that change the experience.
Why isn't it in the app stores?
Because it doesn't need to be. It's an installable web app (a PWA). You open a link and you're in within ten seconds, with no email or phone number required.
What do people write about?
Love, loneliness, the meaning of life, hope, nostalgia. The things you don't tell anyone who knows you.
How did he rebuild it without knowing how to code?
By directing AI assistants for months: specifying, reviewing, testing, and deciding. He played the role of a project lead, with artificial intelligence as his development team.

Contact

Fernando Debernardi — hola@seabottles.org — interviews in Spanish (Argentina, GMT-3).

Materials in this kit: free for press use, with credit to Seabottles.

Last updated: October 10, 2026.