Highlights:

• Custom JWT Authentication (no 3rd-party auth)
• Real-time Messaging via Socket.io
• Online/Offline Presence Indicators
• Notification & Typing Sounds (with toggle)
• Welcome Emails on Signup (Resend)
• Image Uploads (Cloudinary)
• REST API with Node.js & Express
• MongoDB for Data Persistence
• API Rate-Limiting powered by Arcjet
• Beautiful UI with React, Tailwind CSS & DaisyUI
• Zustand for State Management
• Git & GitHub Workflow (branches, PRs, merges)
• Easy Deployment (free-tier friendly with Sevalla)