I have been enjoying the wild world of decentralized social media applications. Almost like with crypto bubbles, we are in a phase where many intelligent people work to make it a reality. However, I have two big issues with the whole endeavor.
First, Total or predominantly decentralized multi-modal social protocols inevitably run into bottlenecks as they grow to achieve scale. Decentralized protocols present benefits for users but also introduce fundamental limitations. Running a service built on one of these makes it impossible to deliver the speed and consistency that users have come to expect, mainly if an application relies exclusively on a blockchain. One important thing to remember about these framework setups is their reliance on self-hosted/volunteer-operated relays, individual servers, etc. Over, to deliver network total search plus performance, my bet is these diverse networks will undoubtedly consolidate into large, powerful, centralized services,
Second, People have high standards, lots of experience using them, and a laundry list of relationships. There will always be a percentage of users dedicated to the benefits of these protocols. A new superior experience user experience is critical to getting someone to switch apps. Or there must be enough people on the network who feel left out if they do not join. So these apps have to do something challenging for a startup: create something mind-blowing, new, and feature-rich.
While the Warpcast is full of crypto bros, the Farcaster protocol that powers it seems to me to be in the best position. The requirement of a crypto wallet might be a barrier to entry for users a while longer, and the app is pretty similar to Twitter. There are unique features, such as frames, that create small windows with miniature apps within them. However, Warpcast is still a Twitter clone, even with several newer features. Yet, forecaster blends decentralization, which it uses for account creation, and leans heavily into NFTs. Regarding content storage, delivery, and search, the protocol takes a much more modern plus centralized approach.
I am excited to see what unfolds with ATProto, Nostr, Lens Protocol, Farcaster, Mastodon, and more. I hope that developers and the money in the space results in the transformation of social media. And despite my doubts about replacing a primary tech application, I am hopeful these protocols can positively impact the thinking throughout the space.
