Friend.Tech is a decentralized social platform deployed on the second-layer network "Base Chain" created by Coinbase, featuring its tightly integrated X platform (formerly Twitter) and Web2 authentication.
Friend.Tech’s integration approach allows users to conduct potentially profitable activities based on their existing social media identities. On this platform, users’ social influence and engagement can be directly priced in the market through tokenization.
As one of the most successful Web3 applications in the SocialFi space, Friend.Tech showed strong financial performance in its first month of launch, achieving the highest revenue to net deposit ratio in history, with revenue exceeding US$2 million and corresponding to US$33 million in net deposits.
As decentralized social media is gaining traction, Friend.Tech’s success story provides a powerful example of how to effectively combine social media dynamics and blockchain technology.
01. Successful SocialFi fan economy model
The core of Friend.Tech's operation is the fan economy. Users need to join through an invitation code and deposit 0.01 ETH to activate the account. This currency is used to purchase influence shares of other users.
These shares, also known as "Keys", not only represent the user's social influence, but also serve as a ticket to enter private chats. After purchasing Keys, users can have a one-on-one conversation directly with the influencers they invested in. This model not only enhances the interaction between fans and idols, but also allows fans to potentially benefit from the growing popularity of the content creators they support.
For content creators (KOLs), they can earn 5% fees from each share (Key) transaction, which provides them with continuous financial incentives. The platform Friend.tech also extracts 5% from each transaction, so a total of 10% fees will be charged for each transaction. This mechanism not only supports the continued operation of the platform, but also ensures that content creators can get direct financial returns from their efforts.
02. Start: User-friendly
Friend.Tech effectively utilizes users' Web2 social networks by integrating Apple ID or email login and connecting to Twitter accounts, greatly reducing the migration cost for new users.
In the early stages of social applications, migrating existing social relationships to new platforms is a challenge. Friend.Tech draws on successful cases of Web2, such as Meta's strategy of interconnecting Instagram accounts when launching Threads, to reduce users' migration resistance.
In addition, by limiting the number of invitation codes and gradually increasing the number of codes issued, Friend.Tech created a sense of market scarcity and rapid growth of initial users, once again emphasizing the importance of Web2 platforms in the initial startup stage of social media.
In terms of simplifying the user experience, Friend.Tech has embedded the Base official bridge page, allowing users to directly connect to wallets such as Metamask within the app and conduct transactions, greatly reducing the user entry threshold and operational complexity.
In addition, by adopting the implementation form of PWA (Progressive Web App), users can save web pages to their desktops without downloading and installing, simplifying the program development and regulatory listing process. The MPC wallet implementation in cooperation with Privy ensures higher security and user experience, without the need for signature operations for each transaction.
03. Development: Speculation-driven
The price model is one of the core mechanisms for Friend.Tech to attract users.
When a user purchases his first key at a price of 0, the price of subsequent keys increases according to the formula S^2/16000, where S represents the total number of keys.
This design not only pushes up prices, but also intensifies the extent to which latecomers can push up prices, making the price curve discrete rather than continuous, and triggering speculative behavior among users.
In addition, by distributing 100 million points in the next six months, Friend.Tech has stimulated active user participation and rapid growth in TVL. This move has also triggered widespread discussion on social platforms, enhancing the integration of social media and financial attributes.
04. Improvement: Value Construction
As trading demand increases, the ecosystem around Friend.Tech is gradually taking shape. Developers have developed various data dashboards and automation tools, such as FriendMEX provided by Paradigm engineers, to visualize the price of kol tokens and monitor new users and new transactions. The emergence of FT funds in the form of ETFs has also enriched the entire ecosystem, providing more value exchange and speculation opportunities.
In terms of user experience, new platforms such as Tomo and New Bitcoin City have demonstrated the complement and improvement of Friend.Tech by providing a smoother experience, richer functions and a more secure wallet design. The emergence of these platforms not only provides a diversified user experience, but also strengthens the integration of social and financial attributes, further promoting the development of the SocialFi field.
Friend.Tech has become a phenomenal application by effectively combining social media and blockchain technology through its innovative design and strategy. Its success lies not only in its technical implementation and market strategy, but also in its ability to grasp the social and economic needs of users and create a new social platform that is both speculative and practical.
05. Overview of key developments
Beta release and user growth
On August 11, 2023, Friend.Tech launched its beta version, which immediately attracted widespread attention and discussion.
After the launch, new users surged by more than 64,000, and transaction volume exceeded 24,000 ETH. This significant growth not only demonstrates Friend.Tech’s strong ability to attract new users and promote blockchain participation, but also demonstrates its broad appeal among non-cryptocurrency users.
Amid the chorus of praise in the cryptocurrency space, many acknowledged the app’s performance in onboarding a large number of individuals to blockchain. However, some forward-thinking voices began to explore the burnout that users may be experiencing, reflecting concerns about the platform’s sustainability.
[Paradigm Seed Round Financing and Financial Performance]
Friend.Tech announced on its official Twitter that it has received Paradigm’s seed round of financing. Against the background of poor overall market performance, this financing has brought significant financial and traffic support to Friend.Tech. The project has had more than 11 million cumulative transactions in two months, more than 500,000 user addresses, and achieved more than $21 million in revenue. These data not only prove the effectiveness of its business model, but also demonstrate its ability to achieve financial self-sufficiency in a short period of time, which was particularly rare in the market environment at the time.
Social media strategy sparks controversy
In April 2024, Friend.Tech's social media strategy sparked widespread controversy.
In several consecutive tweets posted on the official Twitter account, the platform claimed that "Friend.Tech users are all rich people, and poor people should not have anything to do with Friend.Tech", which attracted widespread attention and discussion in the community.
Initially, these tweets were thought to be stolen accounts, but subsequent tweets were clearly intentional, suggesting that the upcoming V2 version would focus on the high-end market. This aggressive social media strategy, while increasing the attention of V2, also caused tension within the community and questioned the platform's values.
【V2 version release and challenges】
On May 4, 2024, with the launch of version V2, Friend.Tech attempts to enhance user governance and interaction by introducing new features and changes.
The core feature of the V2 version is the introduction of the $FRIEND token, marking the platform's move towards a more decentralized and community-driven direction.
However, the new release was criticized for its unclear user interface and lack of user guidance. In particular, the newly introduced “Club” feature, which was designed to enhance the sense of community and engagement, had a bumpy implementation and user experience, making it difficult for users to claim airdrops, join clubs, or find established clubs.
【Develop Friendchain and maintain Base cooperation】
In June and July 2024, Friend.Tech announced that it would work with Conduit to develop Friendchain using FRIEND as the Gas Token. This plan initially showed Friend.Tech's shift from relying on existing blockchain platforms to building its own chain. However, after extensive feedback from the community, Friend.Tech decided that the FRIEND token would not be migrated from the Base chain. This decision highlights the importance of community opinion and emphasizes the importance of maintaining a 100% community-controlled token.
【Airdrop Claim and Community Feedback】
On May 3, 2024, Friend.Tech opened the airdrop claim for FRIEND tokens. Previously, the platform announced on X Platform that it would optimize the token claim process in response to user requests for shared airdrops. This decision demonstrates Friend.Tech's responsiveness to user needs and its willingness to adjust its strategy based on community feedback.
summary
Friend.Tech has demonstrated clear advantages in community-driven token design, deepening social interaction, and innovation in platform governance. At the same time, the platform is also facing challenges in user experience, community disputes, and uncertainty in execution, which together affect users' judgment of its long-term value.
In the future, Friend.Tech should continue to promote technological updates and functional expansion, and its position in the blockchain social media market may become clearer.
At present, for investors and users, Friend.Tech may be a hidden growth opportunity or a high-risk option that needs to be treated with caution. In this case, for users who want to understand and participate in depth, the most practical way may be to directly participate in the social circles of interest, experience its services and functions through actual use, and thus better evaluate its true value and potential.