Friend.tech is a decentralized social media platform that lets users swap keys to access private content and chatrooms of their friends or influencers on X (formerly Twitter). The platform, which launched in August 2023, is based on Coinbase’s Base protocol, a layer-2 scaling solution that enables fast and cheap transactions, and it was met with mixed reactions from the crypto community.
Friend.Tech’s Rise Hasn’t Been Without Controversies
The platform has seen phenomenal growth in revenue and total value locked (TVL) since its inception. Data provided by Dune Analytics on October 2 shows how Friend.tech’s revenue has surged to 10,663 ETH and its TVL grew to over 30,000 ETH.
The platform has also attracted over 9 million users who have made more than 10 million communicative transactions. The concept of Friend.tech is simple: users can buy shares in their friends and influencers on the platform, which gives them access to keys associated with their X accounts.
These keys unlock private in-app chatrooms and content only available from the corresponding X user. Users can also sell their shares or keys at any time, creating a dynamic market for social interactions.
The platform has been praised by many in the Web3 space as a novel way to monetize social media and empower creators. However, it has also faced criticism and skepticism from some quarters, who question its revenue model, its ethics, and its longevity.
Some critics have argued that the platform is unsustainable, as the share prices of popular users have skyrocketed in the first few weeks, making them unaffordable for most users. Others have raised concerns about the privacy and security of the keys, as well as the potential for manipulation and exploitation of users.
Despite these challenges, Friend.tech has continued to thrive and defy its detractors. The platform has shown that there is a strong demand for a decentralized social network that rewards users for their social capital and engagement. Friend.tech is not only a platform for social media, but also a platform for social innovation.
