With the Base App not working out, Coinbase has had to take a step back and look at its blockchain social media plans in a new light. It shows how hard it can be to innovate in a crypto space that is moving so fast.
Ambitious Goals Meet Harsh Reality
The idea was to put together a first-of-its-kind social platform on-chain, but in the end it didn’t measure up to what was on the drawing board. Jesse, one of the heads of the Base project, will be the first to tell you that they couldn’t get the kind of user engagement they were after, which is what put the rethinking in motion. In the end, the misstep with the app comes down to reading the room wrong: they put too much stock in how ready the market was and didn’t give enough weight to the friction of trying to make social media and blockchain work as one.
Shifting Market Trends and Missed Opportunities
The Coinbase team has had to deal with some hard roadblocks lately, thanks to the way the crypto market is moving. You can see it in this week’s Unchained: with the rise of things like prediction markets and perps, the Base side of the house has been having a tough time. Jesse was open about the fact that they didn’t make the necessary adjustments in time, and in doing so let some chances for a pivot or a new feature slip by.
It’s a case in point with what happened to the Base App. To hold your ground in this industry you have to be as nimble as you are inventive. If you can’t get on top of where the users and the tech are heading, a project with all the right potential can become a thing of the past in no time.
Lessons Learned and Future Outlook
Jesse put it down to being too hopeful with the Base App. In his view, that kind of optimism can cloud judgment and lead to missteps, not to mention a failure to see how much one has to be on one’s toes in an environment like this. It has made Coinbase take a hard look at its methods for blockchain socials and think about being more nimble with its strategy from here on out.
The way things went with Base is a lesson for anyone in the crypto world, as was the case on Unchained. You have to have the vision, but you also have to be ready to change course when the unexpected comes up if you want to make it.
Source — Unchained: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67Z85IprarM
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