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Discord co-founder and CTO Stanislav Vishnevskiy says the company is rebuilding its desktop client in Rust with GPUI, moving away from Electron. Windows Latest reported that an early Windows 11 screenshot of the project, labeled “Discord Phoenix,” showed 290.2MB of RAM use; that single reading does not establish typical performance or a final release date.
Discord is rebuilding its desktop client in Rust with the GPUI interface framework, co-founder and chief technology officer Stanislav Vishnevskiy said, confirming that the new client will move away from Electron. The announcement matters to Windows users because Discord has acknowledged that its current app can exceed 4GB of memory use, while an early Windows 11 screenshot of the new project showed 290.2MB.
Vishnevskiy described the project in posts on X, saying Discord had used Rust in parts of its technology since 2018 and that rebuilding the whole client in the language had been a long-term goal. He said the desktop app will use GPUI, rather than Electron or Tauri. The announcement confirms the intended technology direction, but not a public launch date or a complete list of features.
Windows Latest reported seeing an early Windows 11 screenshot of the client, labeled “Discord Phoenix.” The screenshot showed a memory reading of 290.2MB. That is an observation from an early build, not a controlled comparison with the current app or evidence of what users will see during ordinary use. Discord has not supplied performance measurements for the new client in the source material.
The report says Discord’s existing Windows app can consume substantially more memory during use. In a Reddit post in December 2025, a Discord employee said the company was testing an automatic restart when the client exceeded 4GB of RAM, describing normal usage as below 1GB. The employee also reported a 5% reduction in p95 memory use at that time. Those figures refer to the company’s earlier work on the existing client, not measured results from the Rust rebuild.
Potential Memory Savings for Users
A desktop client that uses less memory could leave more capacity for games, browsers, creative software and other applications, particularly on computers with limited RAM. Discord is often kept open in the background, so any sustained reduction could matter to users who run it alongside other demanding programs. The potential benefit is relevant to both performance and the number of applications a computer can comfortably run at once.
But the 290.2MB screenshot is not proof that the final client will use that amount in normal conditions. Memory use can change as people join voice calls, open servers, load media or run the app for long periods. Users should wait for a released version and independent testing before treating the screenshot as a reliable estimate of everyday performance.
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Discord’s Earlier Memory Work
Discord’s current desktop client is based on Electron, a framework for building desktop software with web technologies. Windows Latest says Electron apps package Chromium components with the application. That architecture is a point of comparison in Discord’s rebuild, although the framework alone does not determine how much memory any particular app will use.
Discord had already acknowledged memory problems before this announcement. The company’s reported test of restarting the Windows client above 4GB was a way to address extreme usage, not a replacement for the underlying application. In the December 2025 Reddit statement cited by Windows Latest, a Discord employee said the company was working with partners on issues involving the platform, operating system, drivers or hardware as well. The new Rust project is a separate, broader change to the client’s implementation.
Vishnevskiy said the mobile app will keep its native user interface while sharing application code with desktop through Rust. He also ruled out Tauri for the new desktop interface, naming GPUI instead. Those details distinguish the plan from a simple rewrite that retains a web interface inside a system webview.
“The holy grail was getting the whole client there.”
— Stanislav Vishnevskiy, Discord co-founder and CTO, in a post on X
Release and Performance Still Unknown
Discord has not announced when the Rust client will be available, whether it will first reach a limited test group, or when it might replace the current desktop app. The source material also does not specify which Windows versions or other desktop platforms are included in the initial rollout.
The reported 290.2MB reading comes from an early screenshot, with no information provided about what the app was doing, how long it had been running, the test system’s specifications or how memory was measured. It cannot be compared directly with claims about the existing client’s usage without matching test conditions. It is also unclear how the new client will perform in voice calls, large servers and other heavier workloads, or whether every feature in the current app will be available at launch.
Awaiting a Testable Release
The next useful milestone will be a release or public test that lets users and independent reviewers compare the Rust client with the existing app under similar conditions. Discord has not provided a date for that milestone in the material cited here. Until then, the confirmed news is the planned move away from Electron, while the screenshot’s memory figure remains an early-build observation.
Key Questions
Is Discord’s desktop app already replacing Electron?
No. Discord has confirmed that it is rebuilding the client in Rust with GPUI, but the source material gives no date for a public release or replacement of the current app.
Does the new app really use 290.2MB of RAM?
Windows Latest reported a screenshot of an early Windows 11 build showing 290.2MB. The screenshot does not establish typical usage, and details about the workload and test conditions were not provided.
Why is Discord moving away from Electron?
The announcement confirms the move to a Rust client with GPUI, but Vishnevskiy’s reported comments do not give a specific performance target or say that memory use is the sole reason for the rewrite.
When will the Rust version be available?
No release date was provided in the source material. It is also not clear whether Discord will offer a public test before a wider rollout.
What did Discord say about the current app’s memory use?
A Discord employee said in December 2025 that the company was testing a restart if the Windows client went above 4GB of RAM, and described normal usage as below 1GB. Those comments concern the existing client, not results from the Rust rebuild.
Source: windowslatest.com
