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Front-row views on TON ecosystem as a 1st Gen WeChat App Builder
- Authors
- Name
- Chance Jiang
- @chancejiang
标题：第一代 WeChat App 开发者带你坐最前排观察 TON 生态（英文）
As a first generation WeChat App/MiniApp builder, such as this photo vending machine using only WeChat APIs, I got the chance to witness and feel what's the Telegram (or TON) app ecosystem felt like in the past few months' project work and engagements in Hong Kong and Singapore. I got a few take-aways.
A quick recap,
- Builders from mainland China have been a major driving force in the Telegram (App/MiniApp) ecosystem, bringing with them their sometimes over-obsession on user growth tactics, wishing that they could re-use their WeChat user growth tactics on their Telegram apps.
- Tokenized gaming, or GameFi, is the biggest genre of TG apps by the Chinese builders, such as the tap to mine MiniApps.
- < 1% of Chinese participants in TON / TG ecosystem came from hard-tech background like myself (IoT, AI, blockchain design, etc.).
- Smaller and invite-only meetups by Web3 or crypto funds could provide you the most relavent people to hang out with on serious product and tech topics.
August 17, 2024, HK (TON Society HK meetup)
With invitation and sponsorship from a Singapore based (contract work) employer of mine, I joined the team to pitch our AI x Web3 startup idea to the TON Society HK meetup.
We pitched the audience as we planned, with me, feeling NOT so interested and amused by the audience responses to the hard-tech narrative we presented, how to build AI compute hosting services for TG apps.
A few key take-away in more detail,
- Chinese builders tended to draw heavily, sometimes naively, on their early success with WeChat apps/MiniApp in the early 2010s. They probably have not yet realized these conditions that DRASTICALLY DIFFERENTIATE Telegram from those in WeChat. Here is my comparison list,
| Features | Telegram | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary User Base Language | Mandarin Chinese | English, Russian, and a diverse range of languages |
| Payment Systems | Primarily WeChat Pay, a unified payment system in China | Multiple fiat and crypto payment options, including third-party integrations |
| User Base Geographic Distribution | Concentrated in China | More dispersed globally, with significant user bases in various regions |
| Regulatory Compliance and Jurisdictional Frictions | Operates primarily within China, subject to Chinese regulations | Global operation, facing varying regulatory challenges in different jurisdictions |
| Platform Focus | All-in-one super app, integrating messaging, social media, payments, and various services | Primarily a messaging app with a focus on security and privacy, trying to mimic WeChat in all possible ways |
| Openness to Third-Party Developers | Limited third-party app ecosystem, primarily controlled by Tencent | More open platform, allowing for a wider range of third-party apps and bots |
| Data Privacy and Security | Subject to Chinese data privacy laws and regulations | Strong emphasis on privacy and security, with end-to-end encryption and decentralized features |
| Business Model | Primarily advertising and value-added services | Primarily relies on founder donations, premium features, and increasingly on tokenized marketplaces |
| Community Culture | Mono-cultrual, centralized and controlled by Tencent, under P.R. China's laws | More decentralized and community-driven, with a strong emphasis on user freedom and customization |
Most of their product designs are too much influenced by the aging China Web2 model, specifically,
- a CULTRUALLY UNIFIED demographics
- ONE UNIFIED payment gateway, WeChat Pay
- likely under-estimating the ops cost in serving a highy fragmented user base as in Telegram ecosystem, even if the app's team is English-fuent
Few app builders were keen in talking about user value of their apps, or they DID NOT care or NOT capable to, hence most their value proposition fall short in long term valuation
Give all above somehow negative reviews, I found Chinese TON/Telegram ecosystem builders uniformly demonstrating the following strength,
- they're VERY technical and engineering minded;
- they are hands-on and fast in implementing app ideas;
- they are GOOD team players or followers if a strong product leader and investor(s) come along to support a Chinese builder team
Sept 16~20, 2024, Singapore (token2049)
Sept 16~20, I traveled to Singapore for a web3 project's consulting job, and hopped on token2049 events as well. As product director of this Web3 x AI project, I joined a private meetup hosted by TOM - TON Open Market folks and leading players in Asia's TON ecosystem, such as t.fund.
After a few days' intense team brainstorm and touching-base, the project's CEO was able to pitch the audience on the project's thesis and value proposition. I felt so happy with the opportunity to work with the world's top executives who's built various crypto-native banking services.
During this invite-only event in a luxury private villa, I came across a web3 startup founder, Mr. Masashi from Tokyo Japan, a rare demographics of web3 founders, indeed. But I managed to pick Mr. Masashi's brain by recoding an impromptus podcast, anyway. We touched upon how AI can be applied in DeFi and web3 projects in general.
As my project team mates suggested, unlike joining token2049, only private meetups like this one can bring us the MOST relevant people who's got something meaningful to share, in terms of fund, tech or startup ideas. They're good audience for sharing industrial trends and popular narratives, such as Decentralized AI x Web3, and specifically, how can we build AI services for Telegram apps builders.
You can learn more about my Sept Singapore trip on this podcast, tikolyDAO status update.
Sept 19 to 20, I hanged around token2049 conferences, especially those on DeAI x Web3, and met top minds in the fields across the world. I exchanged ideas on the most cutting-edge thinkers who's deep into the intersection between AI (or Decentralized AI) and the blockchain (aka programmable money), I summarized the 3 categories of blockchain applications in building AI compute / platforms,
- Blockchain for the resource accounting of AI compute
- Blockchain for dataset (ownership) governance of AI compute
- Blockchain as settlement layers of AI compute
There are other popular frameworks to think about how blockchain tech can be applied to buidling AI platforms, such as The promise and challenges of crypto + AI applications by Vitalik Buterin.
Overall, I was deeply satisfied with my very opinionated approach to engage AI builders in token2049 Singapore, amid the crowd of crypto traders who probably do not care as much what's driving AI adoption in Web3.