DeSo FAQ

What is DeSo?

DeSo is a new layer-1 blockchain, specifically designed to decentralize social media for a global audience. It aims to shift ownership from big-tech companies to users, empowering them with full control over their identity, content, and social connections in a censorship-resistant manner.

How does DeSo empower creators and developers?

DeSo provides creators with crypto-native monetization tools like Social Tokens, DAOs, NFTs, and Social Tipping. Developers can build in a gasless, permissionless environment, leveraging the blockchain's scalability for storage-heavy or infinite-state applications.

Who founded DeSo and when?

DeSo was founded by Nader Al-Naji in January 2019. Al-Naji, a Princeton University graduate, has a background in software engineering and previously worked at the D. E. Shaw Group and Google.

What makes DeSo unique in the blockchain space?

DeSo is not a general-purpose blockchain; it focuses on social-oriented features implemented directly on the blockchain, allowing for highly scalable storage capabilities and cost-effective on-chain storage.

What are some key applications of DeSo?

DeSo supports a range of decentralized applications (dApps) like decentralized versions of Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and fundraising platforms, enabling various social media interactions on the blockchain.

How does DeSo handle data-intensive applications?

DeSo's infrastructure is tailored for the high data demands of social applications, making it a suitable platform for scalable decentralized social networks and apps.

What monetization opportunities does DeSo offer?

DeSo allows creators to monetize through NFTs, social tokens, and tipping. This opens up new avenues for creators to earn from their content and engagement.

How user-friendly is DeSo for developers?

DeSo supports commonly used programming languages like Javascript, Python, and Ruby on Rails, making it accessible and developer-friendly for building decentralized social apps.

What is the DeSo Social Block Explorer?

The DeSo Social Block Explorer is a tool that brings transparency to the platform, offering insights into on-chain behavior, transaction details, and real-time tracking of crypto assets like NFTs and Social Tokens.

How does DeSo address security and user experience?

DeSo has introduced enhancements to its Social Wallet, including additional security layers and user-friendly features like seamless account backup, making it more secure and convenient for users.

What free services does the DeSo Foundation provide?

The DeSo Foundation offers free services and tools like APIs, Indexers, Storage, Wallets, and Launchpads, which is rare for Layer-1 blockchains. This initiative supports crypto innovation at the application layer​​.

What future potential does the DeSo app ecosystem hold?

The future app ecosystem on DeSo is anticipated to be unprecedented in the crypto world, which could significantly impact its market valuation once realized​​.

What is the DeSo Drive update coming in 2024?

DeSo Drive, scheduled for 2024, is a major update aimed at significantly reducing the cost of uploading all content types, including videos, directly onto DeSo​​.

Does DeSo support auto-compounding in PoS staking?

DeSo is expected to introduce auto-compounding in Proof of Stake (PoS) staking, a feature enabled by derived keys, eliminating the need for manual claiming and restaking rewards​​.

What is HeroSwap and its significance in DeSo?

HeroSwap is a cross-chain platform within DeSo, facilitating transactions between multiple cryptocurrencies like BTC, ETH, SOL, AVAX, and DESO. It caters to the increasing demand for layer-1 level exchanges​​.

What are the key issues with traditional web2 social media?

Traditional web2 social media has significant issues such as centralization, ad-driven business models, and a lack of ownership, which DeSo aims to address​​.

How does DeSo benefit creators?

DeSo provides creators with a platform to build an audience, monetize content, and transfer their following across different apps within the DeSo ecosystem​​.

What opportunities does DeSo offer for developers?

DeSo offers a developer-friendly environment for building decentralized social applications, supporting the integration of money-native features designed for web3​​.

How can users start using DeSo today?

Users can begin exploring the DeSo ecosystem by creating a DeSo identity, allowing them to access various apps within the ecosystem with a single profile​​.

What are social graphs and their significance in DeSo?

Social graphs represent the interconnected relationships in an online social network. DeSo enables users to own their social graphs, contrasting with web2 platforms where such data is typically owned by the platform​​.

What are the main issues with traditional social media that DeSo aims to solve?

Traditional social media suffers from limited innovation in creator monetization, control of public discourse by a few companies, and exclusion of third-party developers. DeSo addresses these by integrating monetary speculation with social media, offering new monetization models not based on ads​​.

What is the concept of creator coins in DeSo?

DeSo introduces creator coins as a novel monetization tool. Each creator on DeSo has a unique coin that anyone on the platform can buy and sell, enabling innovative monetization and fostering deeper connections between creators and their followers​​.

How does DeSo differ from platforms like Facebook or Twitter in terms of content ownership and monetization?

Unlike traditional social media where corporations own and monetize content, DeSo stores all data on a public blockchain. This enables anyone to run a node and curate their own feed, democratizing content ownership and monetization​​.

How does DeSo lower the barrier to entry for creating new social media products?

DeSo's use of a public blockchain for data storage allows even a single engineer to build a competitive social media experience. This significantly lowers the entry barrier compared to traditional platforms, where building a large user base is essential​​.

What incentives does DeSo provide for publishers and creators?

Publishers are incentivized to contribute data back to DeSo's blockchain, as failing to do so could deter top creators. This arrangement offers creators unparalleled reach and direct relationships with their followers, along with diverse monetization opportunities​​.

How does DeSo enable new monetization models for creators?

DeSo, being money-native and open-source, allows for global experimentation with new monetization methods. Features like premium content subscriptions and paid interactions are made accessible to the entire user base instantly​​.

What new content ranking signals does DeSo introduce?

DeSo's money-native nature leads to novel content ranking signals. An example is ranking comments by the coin price of the commenter, which has proven effective in reducing spam and is distinct from traditional platforms​​.

How does DeSo ensure its long-term decentralization?

DeSo's design incentivizes creators to post directly to the blockchain and prevents developers from losing access to data or APIs, maintaining decentralization. This contrasts with traditional social media, which often becomes more centralized over time​​.

What is DeSo’s vision for the future of the internet?

DeSo aims to transform the internet into a more decentralized and innovative space, moving away from the current centralized model. The goal is to enable a new generation of applications built collaboratively across the globe​​.

What is the upcoming DeSo consumer app?

DeSo is launching a new consumer app that emphasizes the benefits of owning content, social graphs, and assets, set to draw widespread attention to these unique features of DeSo​​.

What can we expect from the new DeSo app named 'Focus'?

'Focus' is DeSo's upcoming app that integrates infrastructure improvements and insights about virality, retention, community, and crypto. It aims to mainstream crypto by leveraging these key elements​​.

How does DeSo plan to extend beyond DeFi?

DeSo's vision includes going beyond Decentralized Finance (DeFi) by offering a broader range of decentralized applications and services that encompass various aspects of social media and content ownership​​.

What is 'Revolution PoS' in DeSo?

'Revolution PoS' is a planned update for DeSo, introducing a state-of-the-art consensus mechanism with native staking and yield, starting at 20% APY. It also includes an innovative burn-maximizing fee algorithm for deflationary pressure​​.

What is the future vision of DeSo?

DeSo envisions significant growth in consumer app development and daily user interaction with the blockchain. It aims to be a pivotal technology like the "iPhone" or "ChatGPT," making decentralized social media mainstream​​.

How does DeSo address the perceived early stage of crypto adoption?

DeSo aims to prove that mainstream adoption of crypto is not just possible but imminent. The platform has been focusing on building the infrastructure needed to onboard masses and showcase its capabilities​​.

How can users buy $DESO anonymously?

DeSo offers a platform allowing users to buy $DESO anonymously in under 10 seconds. This can be done directly on-chain without the need for a centralized exchange (CEX)​​.

What is the onboarding experience like for new DeSo users?

DeSo provides an onboarding experience with a web2-like user interface for its web3 social apps. This approach is designed to simplify the transition for users new to decentralized platforms​​.

How does DeSo support creators in monetizing their content?

DeSo offers creators multiple ways to monetize their content from the outset, without the risk of being de-platformed or de-monetized. This approach contrasts with the limitations and uncertainties faced by creators on centralized web2 social media platforms​​.

What is the upcoming DeSo consumer app and its significance?

DeSo is launching a new consumer app focused on empowering users to own their content, social graph, and assets, highlighting the benefits of content ownership in the decentralized space​​.

What is the Focus app in the DeSo ecosystem?

Focus is an upcoming app in the DeSo ecosystem, combining infrastructure improvements and insights on virality, retention, and community, aimed at mainstreaming crypto​​.

How does DeSo extend beyond DeFi?

DeSo aims to go beyond decentralized finance (DeFi) by integrating features that enhance the overall user experience and broaden the platform's utility​​.

What is Revolution PoS in the DeSo blockchain?

Revolution PoS, launching in Q1 2024, is a state-of-the-art consensus mechanism for the DeSo Blockchain, featuring native staking, yield starting at 20% APY, and an innovative burn-maximizing fee algorithm​​.

What can users expect from DeSo's next killer app?

DeSo's next app is designed to be as user-friendly as Instagram, offering multiple monetization methods. It includes unique features like social airdrops and bounties, all operating on-chain​​.

What is the future outlook for DeSo?

DeSo is expected to see significant growth in user interaction and app development. It's poised to become a mainstream technology, decentralizing social media​​.

Can DeSo prove mainstream adoption of crypto is possible?

DeSo challenges the notion that mainstream adoption of crypto is premature, focusing on building infrastructure to onboard the mass market​​.

How does DeSo simplify acquiring DESO tokens?

DeSo offers a platform for purchasing DESO tokens anonymously in under 10 seconds, eliminating the need for centralized exchanges (CEX)​​.

How easy is it to get started with DeSo?

DeSo provides an onboarding process that's simple and user-friendly, making it easy for users to engage with web3 social apps with web2-like user experience​​.

What monetization opportunities does DeSo offer to creators?

DeSo enables creators to monetize their content freely without the risk of de-platforming or de-monetization, offering multiple earning methods from day one​​.