Not talking about technology but about social interactions, the crypto world is starting to become more human

The cryptocurrency market is like the fashion industry, with new concepts becoming popular every so often. From 2023 to 2024, everyone is talking about technological upgrades and underlying architectures—things that sound cool but are also quite abstract. However, as we enter 2025, a more down-to-earth trend is emerging—social interaction, something we do every day, is returning to the center of the crypto world in a whole new way. The social software we are accustomed to is essentially a traffic business; platforms make money through algorithms and advertisements, and your data is locked in their servers. But in the world of Web3 (the new generation of the internet), "social" takes on a completely different meaning—it is not just about chatting and messaging, but relates to whether your digital identity is real and trustworthy, whether the connections with your friends can generate actual value, and how an emoji can resonate with strangers around the globe. In this new world, social interaction is both the underlying infrastructure and a way for everyone to reach consensus; it is both a channel for spreading digital assets and a means of expressing cultural identity. From Worldcoin using iris scans to prove "you are a real person," to TON allowing you to complete transfers, play games, and earn points directly in the chat window, to Pengu, the chubby penguin, sweeping Twitter with emojis and community vibes—these three distinctly styled projects represent three directions: identity verification, economic interaction, and cultural dissemination, together outlining new possibilities for human connections in the crypto world. This change signifies that the crypto world is shifting from a cold, technical competition to a warmer, more human-centric phase. The basic needs that were once obscured by complex terminology—wanting to find like-minded people, wanting to express one's personality, wanting to gain recognition and value through interaction—are becoming the driving force for innovation again. Social interaction may be becoming the shortest path connecting the virtual world and real life, and it is likely to be the most resonant story for ordinary people in the next wave of trends.

1. Worldcoin: Solving the "Are you a real person?" Problem with Iris Scans

When it comes to the foundation of social interaction, we first need to address a question that sounds a bit absurd but is indeed real: how do you prove you are a real person in the online world? On WeChat and Twitter, this question seems unimportant because the platforms help filter it out. But in the decentralized Web3 world, without Tencent or Musk backing you, an account could be a real person or a bot, and one person could disguise themselves as hundreds or thousands of accounts to manipulate votes, exploit rewards, or create false consensus. This is the core issue that Worldcoin aims to solve—by using a somewhat sci-fi-looking silver sphere device (called the Orb) to scan your iris and generate a unique digital identity proof, proving that you are a living person and that there is only one you in the world. At first glance, this mechanism seems a bit cold, even reminiscent of dystopian scenes in sci-fi movies, but it is actually building a "foundation of trust" for the social world of Web3. Imagine when you know that the person chatting with you, voting with you, or participating in a project with you is a real individual, not one of thousands of bot accounts; suddenly, the connection between people gains weight. You can participate in community governance together, with one person, one vote deciding the project's direction; you can establish a credit system based on real identities, making collaboration between strangers possible; you can ensure that airdrops and rewards are genuinely distributed to participants, rather than being harvested by exploiters. Over the past year, various attempts have emerged around World ID—some projects use it for voting systems to ensure that every decision is backed by real people; some social protocols integrate it, allowing users to prove they are not bots while protecting their privacy. The most interesting aspect of Worldcoin is that it transforms "identity" into a form of social capital. In the traditional world, your ID card is just used to prove who you are; but in Web3, a verified real identity may become the most scarce resource—because in a world filled with anonymous accounts, false information, and bot armies, being able to prove "I am a real person" has become the greatest value. This is also why Worldcoin, despite being controversial (after all, scanning irises does sound a bit invasive), still attracts widespread attention. It at least prompts us to think about a question: when technology allows us to infinitely replicate identities, the real "human" becomes the most precious thing.

World Coin begins to focus on ecology

2. TON: Turning the Chat Window into Your Wallet and Game Room

If Worldcoin starts from "proving who you are," then TON (The Open Network) takes a completely different route—it directly transforms an existing social platform into a stage for economic activities. This platform is Telegram, the chat software that almost everyone in the crypto circle uses. Hundreds of millions of people chat, form groups, and follow project updates on Telegram; in the past, it was just a place for information flow where you read messages, sent emojis, and participated in discussions, nothing more. But as the TON ecosystem gradually matures, the entire scene has changed—you can directly open a mini-program in the chat window to transfer funds, play a mini-game to earn points, participate in project tasks to receive rewards, and even complete a transaction, all without leaving Telegram, downloading other apps, or switching between dozens of pages. This experience of "chatting, earning money, and playing games simultaneously" suddenly makes the so-called "social finance" no longer abstract—social interaction is not just chatting; it directly becomes your entry point for economic activities.

What’s even more interesting is that the developer ecosystem on TON is experiencing explosive growth. Various click-to-earn games, marketing tools based on point systems, and embedded e-commerce and payment functions are emerging one after another, turning the entire TON into an "operating system hidden within Telegram." This actually reveals an important trend: Web3 social projects do not necessarily have to start from scratch to create a new social platform (that’s too difficult; WeChat and Twitter have already occupied users' minds), but can directly "parasitize" existing social scenarios, transforming the existing traffic and relationship networks into fertile ground for economic activities. You are already chatting with friends on Telegram every day and discussing projects in groups; now, you can just click a few times to complete a transfer, claim an airdrop, or play a game. This seamless experience makes ordinary people feel for the first time that Web3 is not a distant concept but a tool right at their fingertips. TON proves one thing: social interaction itself is the best entry point. When you embed economic incentives into the interactions people engage in every day, blockchain technology no longer requires users to "learn" or "adapt" specifically; it naturally becomes a part of life.

TON Wallet integrated within Telegram

3. Pengu: How a Chubby Penguin Conquered the Crypto Circle with Cute Emojis

If Worldcoin is solving the "who are you" problem and TON is creating the "how to use" scenarios, then Pengu, the chubby little penguin, answers another question in the simplest and most direct way: why do people come together? The answer may have nothing to do with technology or finance, but rather stems from an indescribable emotional resonance—when you see that silly penguin, you smile and then change it to your avatar, and that’s enough. On Twitter, Pengu is sparking a spontaneous "avatar change movement," with more and more people—from ordinary users to influencers, from retail investors to institutions—changing their avatars to this chubby penguin. The comment sections are filled with homemade emojis and derivative content, and the entire community is growing like a snowball. According to statistics, as of October, over 330 projects and accounts have participated in the Pengu avatar change, with these accounts collectively having over 84 million followers, generating over 12.8 million impressions, more than 230,000 likes, 41,000 replies, and over 70,000 retweets and quotes—behind these numbers is a completely grassroots cultural movement, without advertising budgets or airdrop incentives.

The success of Pengu precisely proves one thing: in the crypto world, consensus does not necessarily have to be established through complex economic models or technological innovations. Sometimes, a cute image or an emotion that everyone can relate to can connect strangers faster. It did not design any intricate token mechanisms, nor did it promise any get-rich-quick myths; it simply made people feel "this penguin is cute," "changing an avatar is fun," "I want to join this community," and then people actually came. This way of connecting based on cultural identity rather than economic interests is particularly special in Web3—because there are too many projects in this space talking about incentives, returns, and mechanisms, but very few can make people genuinely feel "I want to be part of it," not because of the potential to make money, but because they like the atmosphere. Pengu has invisibly created a kind of "social resonance." When you see a screen full of chubby penguin avatars, what you feel is not a project marketing, but a group of like-minded people expressing themselves in the same language. In an era where social interaction is fragmented by algorithms and hijacked by traffic, this spontaneous, pure cultural movement appears particularly real and vibrant. It reminds us that the essence of social interaction, after all, is that indescribable resonance between people, rather than cold data and exchanges of interests.

Source: X

Social Interaction is Becoming a Tangible Future in the Crypto World

Looking back at the three projects—Worldcoin, TON, and Pengu—you will find that each addresses a key aspect of social interaction: Worldcoin tells you "I am a real person," establishing the starting point of trust; TON allows you to "use while chatting," turning social interaction into a natural entry point for economic activities; Pengu proves that "resonance lasts longer than interests," and cultural identity itself is the strongest connection. These three seemingly different paths actually point in the same direction—Web3 social interaction is no longer simply about moving WeChat onto the blockchain, but is redefining the very concept of "connection." In this new world, social interaction is no longer just an independent track or a feature of a certain app, but permeates all applications like air: your identity is social capital, every transaction you make strengthens relationships, and the avatar you change expresses cultural stance. Perhaps it won’t be long before we stop discussing "social projects" specifically, because almost every crypto application will embed social logic—after all, the fundamental issues that blockchain technology aims to solve have never been just technical problems, but how people can better connect, collaborate, and reach consensus.

From cold codes and white papers to identity verification, chat tools, and emojis that resonate with ordinary people, the crypto world is undergoing a "humanization" transformation. The significance of this transformation is far deeper than how much a certain coin has increased in value—it means that this industry is evolving from a playground for tech geeks into a space that can truly accommodate the emotions, needs, and cultural expressions of ordinary people. Those most basic human needs—wanting to be recognized, wanting to find kindred spirits, wanting to gain value and joy through interaction—are becoming the driving force for innovation again. And social interaction, something we do every day and seems so ordinary, may be becoming the shortest path connecting the virtual world and real life, and it is likely the key that will truly bring crypto technology into every household. After all, no matter how advanced the technology, it ultimately needs to return to the connection between people; and a truly warm Web3 world may just start with a real identity verification, a smooth chat transfer, or a chubby penguin that makes you smile.