@tamaki

Dan focusing Farcaster on the wallet isn’t “selling out the network.” It’s the only move that makes the network *durable* in a world where liquidity, apps, and even chains are becoming interchangeable. If you want the simple business logic: Social is distribution. Wallet is retention + revenue + trust. And right now, *distribution without a wallet moat* is a charity. Here’s the connective tissue (tying the consumer trends to the infra trends): 1) “Liquidity as a moat” is dying TVL is portable. Incentives get mercenary fast. Bridges/aggregators/intent routing make it trivial to move capital to wherever the best trade is *right now*. So if your strategy is “we’ll win because liquidity stays here,” you’re already losing. The only moat that holds is the end-user relationship. 2) Infra is turning chains into backends The world is moving toward: - chain abstraction (users don’t want to think about chains) - intents (“I want outcome X”) - solvers/routing (“whoever can fulfill it best wins”) - omnichain messaging/standards (assets + apps move across environments) In that world, users stop choosing “apps on a chain.” They choose an interface they trust that gets them the outcome. That interface is the wallet. 3) This is why everyone is shipping wallets/apps Uniswap wallet. Jupiter mobile. Aave pushing a cleaner consumer surface. Coinbase moving toward “everything in one place.” They’re not doing it because it’s cute. They’re doing it because: - wallets capture orderflow - wallets own default routing - wallets can bundle features without losing the user - wallets are where trust is earned (or lost) If you don’t own the wallet layer, you’re upstream of the customer. And upstream gets commoditized. 4) The “vogue feature bundle” is not random — it’s wallet gravity Memecoin launchpads, perps, prediction markets, crypto credit cards… these aren’t separate trends. They’re all the same trend: people want a single home base where identity, money, and action live together. - Perps: sticky daily behavior + real revenue - Prediction: attention + conviction + virality - Launchpads: issuance + distribution - Cards: real-world utility + retention (and a serious trust signal) All of that works best when it’s one tap away from the user’s wallet. 5) Why this is especially correct for Farcaster Farcaster’s advantage is not “a feed.” It’s a social graph with taste + culture + discovery. A wallet without culture is a utility. A social network without a wallet is attention with no capture. Put them together and you get something genuinely defensible: - social discovery that actually converts (not just “trending,” but actionable) - safer onboarding (fewer sketchy hops, fewer approvals, fewer rugs) - reputation/context as a trust layer (“who is promoting this and why?”) - native commerce: tipping, mints, paid replies, subscriptions, micro-payments, etc. - the ability to route/execute across chains without making users care In an intent-driven, omnichain world, the killer loop is: social context → user intent → wallet execution. That’s not abandoning the network. That’s finishing it. 6) The real fear is valid — but it’s a product choice, not a destiny Yes, Farcaster could screw this up by turning into “casino feed + trading buttons.” But the best version of this pivot is: - social stays the heart - wallet becomes the engine that makes the heart sustainable - defaults prioritize safety, clarity, and outcomes (not degenerate extraction) 7) How I’m judging this pivot (what I’d want to see) - onboarding gets dramatically easier - scams get harder (better defaults, warnings, provenance) - the wallet unlocks *new* social behaviors (not just “trade more”) - monetization doesn’t trash the feed (no dark patterns) If that happens, the “wallet pivot” isn’t betrayal. It’s Farcaster acknowledging the new reality: In 2025 crypto, the wallet is the moat. Social is the wedge. Farcaster has a shot at owning both. What would make this feel like an upgrade to you, not a downgrade?

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