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Reflections from Farcon & the Onchain Creator House
Farcon brought the crypto ecosystem together in New York for a week of energy, introspection, and evolution. This wasn’t just another conference. From spontaneous street interviews to meme panels and breakfast burrito inside jokes, the vibe was unmistakably different: lighter, more playful, and surprisingly self-aware.
But beneath the surface, a deeper conversation unfolded. What does it really mean to be an onchain creator? Have we actually made progress from the promises of five years ago? And if onchain media is “the future,” where are the breakout stars?
Here’s what stood out:
The Creator House wasn’t just an event — it was a statement.
Diana (treegirl) called it “the highlight of my Farcon,” not just because of the programming, but because it aligned with the kind of media she’s trying to build.
After months of planning, Humpty said the event exceeded every expectation. But it was the outpouring of support that caught him off guard. Almost everyone who attended — from creators and builders to first-timers — had something positive to say. When the last guests left and the lights dimmed, Humpty sat with his team and nearly cried — not from stress, but gratitude.
“You can’t do things alone. It takes a village — and we’re building one,”
Share Dialog
Reflections from Farcon & the Onchain Creator House
Farcon brought the crypto ecosystem together in New York for a week of energy, introspection, and evolution. This wasn’t just another conference. From spontaneous street interviews to meme panels and breakfast burrito inside jokes, the vibe was unmistakably different: lighter, more playful, and surprisingly self-aware.
But beneath the surface, a deeper conversation unfolded. What does it really mean to be an onchain creator? Have we actually made progress from the promises of five years ago? And if onchain media is “the future,” where are the breakout stars?
Here’s what stood out:
The Creator House wasn’t just an event — it was a statement.
Diana (treegirl) called it “the highlight of my Farcon,” not just because of the programming, but because it aligned with the kind of media she’s trying to build.
After months of planning, Humpty said the event exceeded every expectation. But it was the outpouring of support that caught him off guard. Almost everyone who attended — from creators and builders to first-timers — had something positive to say. When the last guests left and the lights dimmed, Humpty sat with his team and nearly cried — not from stress, but gratitude.
“You can’t do things alone. It takes a village — and we’re building one,”
As the crew unpacked their experiences, Diana posed the tough question:
“I’m not sure how much we’ve really developed in the right direction over the last five years.”
She pointed out that while there are more tools today — like Pods or Zora — few feel transformative. Many of the early promises about creator empowerment and direct monetization have faded, and Li Jin's “100 true fans” narrative? According to Diana, “That idea’s dead. Nobody’s talking about it anymore.”
Gramajo echoed this skepticism, saying many creators burn out before they ever find traction:
“I’ve seen it over and over. People come in hot, posting daily, but six months later, they’re done.”
For creators to survive long enough to reach product-market fit, they need better incentives — and simpler, more cohesive infrastructure.
Diana didn’t hold back when comparing Farcaster and Lens. Her take:
Lens chased growth too fast, attracting bots and spam early on.
Farcaster, by contrast, prioritized quality and built slowly — resulting in stronger communities and a more usable experience today.
Despite more apps in the Farcaster ecosystem, Diana pointed out that many still struggle to function smoothly. Even so, she believes the quality of discussion and experimentation feels more authentic.
“Facebook Groups might still be the best model we’ve seen for community — and no one has topped it yet,” she quipped.
One comment that stirred debate came from Jesse Pollak:
“The most successful onchain creators will be born onchain — the same way the best TikTokers were born on TikTok.”
At first glance, it sounds visionary. But Diana pushed back hard:
“We’ve been saying that for five years. TikTokers blew up in months. We’ve been waiting years.”
Humpty acknowledged her frustration but argued that the tooling and capital just weren’t there until recently. “You can’t birth a breakout class of creators without giving them a real chance to succeed,” he said.
Gramajo added a useful historical lens, pointing out that even platforms like YouTube and Instagram took years before full-time creators emerged.
“Maybe we’re just early — again. But maybe that’s okay,” he said.
One of the strongest takeaways from Farcon was the emerging consensus that mass onboarding doesn’t work. Instead, crypto needs to go small — and go deep.
“If Farcon is going to be an onboarding event next year... active casters can throw events onboarding folks from their niche and learning about barriers to entry.” said Rubinovitz, a Farcon attendee and web3 advocate.
Projects like Skate Jam and Onchain Creator House were celebrated for showing how subcultures — not generic onboarding funnels — might be the key to growing onchain communities. If we want real creators in this space, we need to meet them where they already are.
Despite the frustrations, there was a quiet optimism pulsing through Farcon. With Coinbase Wallet rolling out embedded social features and Farcaster doubling down on open, composable media, something feels different this time.
“We’re finally building the tools we wished we had five years ago,” said Gramajo. “Now it’s up to us to actually use them.”
The creators haven’t left — they’re just getting sharper. More focused. More aligned. And this time, they’re bringing their corners of the internet with them.
💬 Want to weigh in?
What do you think — are we early or are we late? Are native onchain creators coming… or already here?
Drop your thoughts on Warpcast.
Let’s build the future, one burrito pic at a time.
As the crew unpacked their experiences, Diana posed the tough question:
“I’m not sure how much we’ve really developed in the right direction over the last five years.”
She pointed out that while there are more tools today — like Pods or Zora — few feel transformative. Many of the early promises about creator empowerment and direct monetization have faded, and Li Jin's “100 true fans” narrative? According to Diana, “That idea’s dead. Nobody’s talking about it anymore.”
Gramajo echoed this skepticism, saying many creators burn out before they ever find traction:
“I’ve seen it over and over. People come in hot, posting daily, but six months later, they’re done.”
For creators to survive long enough to reach product-market fit, they need better incentives — and simpler, more cohesive infrastructure.
Diana didn’t hold back when comparing Farcaster and Lens. Her take:
Lens chased growth too fast, attracting bots and spam early on.
Farcaster, by contrast, prioritized quality and built slowly — resulting in stronger communities and a more usable experience today.
Despite more apps in the Farcaster ecosystem, Diana pointed out that many still struggle to function smoothly. Even so, she believes the quality of discussion and experimentation feels more authentic.
“Facebook Groups might still be the best model we’ve seen for community — and no one has topped it yet,” she quipped.
One comment that stirred debate came from Jesse Pollak:
“The most successful onchain creators will be born onchain — the same way the best TikTokers were born on TikTok.”
At first glance, it sounds visionary. But Diana pushed back hard:
“We’ve been saying that for five years. TikTokers blew up in months. We’ve been waiting years.”
Humpty acknowledged her frustration but argued that the tooling and capital just weren’t there until recently. “You can’t birth a breakout class of creators without giving them a real chance to succeed,” he said.
Gramajo added a useful historical lens, pointing out that even platforms like YouTube and Instagram took years before full-time creators emerged.
“Maybe we’re just early — again. But maybe that’s okay,” he said.
One of the strongest takeaways from Farcon was the emerging consensus that mass onboarding doesn’t work. Instead, crypto needs to go small — and go deep.
“If Farcon is going to be an onboarding event next year... active casters can throw events onboarding folks from their niche and learning about barriers to entry.” said Rubinovitz, a Farcon attendee and web3 advocate.
Projects like Skate Jam and Onchain Creator House were celebrated for showing how subcultures — not generic onboarding funnels — might be the key to growing onchain communities. If we want real creators in this space, we need to meet them where they already are.
Despite the frustrations, there was a quiet optimism pulsing through Farcon. With Coinbase Wallet rolling out embedded social features and Farcaster doubling down on open, composable media, something feels different this time.
“We’re finally building the tools we wished we had five years ago,” said Gramajo. “Now it’s up to us to actually use them.”
The creators haven’t left — they’re just getting sharper. More focused. More aligned. And this time, they’re bringing their corners of the internet with them.
💬 Want to weigh in?
What do you think — are we early or are we late? Are native onchain creators coming… or already here?
Drop your thoughts on Warpcast.
Let’s build the future, one burrito pic at a time.
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