TL;DR
- Friend.tech offers a $200,000 bounty to migrate its infrastructure away from Base amid tensions with the Base community and criticism from Farcaster investors.
- The value of the FRIEND token dropped 20%, now trading at $1.07, following the announcement of the potential migration.
- The platform has shown signs of recovery, generating over $500,000 in revenue in a single day.
Friend.tech, the Web3-based social network, is facing a challenging context that could alter its future trajectory. The platform has offered a $200,000 reward to anyone who can find an effective solution to migrate its infrastructure away from Base, the Layer 2 solution for Ethereum developed by Coinbase. The announcement was made amid growing instability in the relationship between Friend.tech and Base, which in the last day has triggered a 20% drop in the value of its native token, FRIEND, now trading at $1.07.
The migration proposal was put forward by itsfounder, known by the pseudonym Racer, who expressed frustration with the current relationship with Base. Racer mentioned that the platform’s team has felt disconnected from the Base community, exacerbated by misunderstandings and criticism from Farcaster investors at the time of the platform’s launch. These tensions have led to an erosion of trust and collaboration between both parties, prompting Friend.tech to consider other options for its future development.
my quick thoughts:
– I love @0xRacerAlt and @friendtech
– they've repeatedly innovated at the edge of what's possible on @base and showed the way for the industry
– their product was incorrectly culturally labeled early on as "negatively speculative" by certain parts of the… https://t.co/m7h1cvLDJQ— Jesse Pollak (jesse.xyz) 🛡️ (@jessepollak) May 26, 2024
Jesse Pollak, a significant contributor to the Base team, responded to Racer’s posts with a conciliatory tone. Pollak lamented the possible departure of Friend.tech, highlighting his appreciation for the team’s continuous efforts in innovation and experimentation. He also expressed his unconditional support for the platform’s decision, emphasizing the importance of autonomy in the decentralized, on-chain economy.
Friend.tech and Privacy Issues
Since its launch in August 2023, the platform has gained attention thanks to its unique model that allows users to trade tokens called “keys.” These tokens grant access to exclusive chats and the possibility of benefiting from the growing popularity of content creators. The platform has seen impressive growth, acquiring more than 200,000 users and a transaction volume exceeding $230 million.
However, the platform has faced privacy-related criticisms, as linking Twitter profiles with Ethereum addresses raised concerns about user doxxing. In response, Friend.tech clarified that the leaked information came from their public API and urged users to be cautious in protecting their personal information.
Despite these challenges, the social network has shown signs of recovery and growth. Recently, the platform generated over $500,000 in revenue in a single day, contrasting with the decline in its revenue to less than $20,000 in previous months. Additionally, the launch of a non-transferable token with the ticker POINTS is being considered as part of its V2 upgrade.
