Web 3.0 is Elevating Creator Economy with Massive $100 Million Creator Funds

Crypto and DeFi companies are creating powerful incentives to attract Creators

After YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Snap, who do you think of when you think of Creator Funds? Maybe not Pinterest or LinkedIn, likely you will see Web 3.0 companies hit this harder as a newer trend that intersects more with GenZ.

That’s exactly what we are seeing.

Web3 Platform Op3n and Avalanche Foundation launch a $100 million creator fund

Creator Funds are all about building in-house tools for creators to feel empowered and create awesome content. As platforms like LinkedIn and Pinterest are barely attracting young creators, they will go where the money is.

The Avalanche Foundation and Web3 social media platform Op3n have announced a $100 million initiative, Culture Catalyst, to let creatives build projects on Avalanche that will only be accessible on the emerging social media platform Op3n.

The Elon Musk Connection

• Named the Culture Catalyst initiative, the first of these funded projects — paid out in the network's native token AVAX — will go towards musician Grimes.

Grimes announced the Avalanche Summit at the Avalanche Summit that it plans to launch an "intergalactic childrens’ metaverse book" to support the development of art, entertainment, and culture-related projects on the Avalanche blockchain.

Op3n similar to TikTok?

Op3n says its user interface is similar to TikTok, an app that makes it easy for creators to use Web3 technology to interact with fans. Users select a creator's profile and connect their wallet to buy NFTs, which gives fans access to additional content. Op3n recently closed a $10 million seed round led by Galaxy Interactive and BRV Capital Management.

It’s hard to make sense of crypto projects and Web 3.0 promises since everything from ICOs to NFTs have been rife with scams and fraud.

Web 3.0 for Culture war of Attention Economy?

• Ethereum-challenger Avalanche makes cultural play with a $100 million creator fund to launch projects on the network exclusively accessible on social media platform Op3n. 

I noticed crypto media outlets like the Block and Coinmarketcap covered this story, but not major tech news outlets, and I don’t really understand why.

In 2021 there was this Fund for developers as well. The $200-million fund aims to foster growth and innovation on the Avalanche network. The Avalanche Foundation had unveiled “Blizzard” — a fund offering more than $200 million in incentives to developers who build on the Avalanche network.

Can Crypto Make a Super-App?

In an interview, founder Jaeson Ma indicated that this project, as well as others to follow, will be available only on the self-described “web3 WeChat” Op3n. On Ava Max’s future music video, the platform will cooperate with her. So is Op3n the TikTok or WeChat of Web 3.0 Jaeson?

Jaeson for some reason reminds me of Justin of Tron. Not people I’d want to trust on the street or the boardroom for that matter, to be honest.

Ma was previously co-founder of 88rising, a music label that helped Asian artists such as Joji, Rich Brian and Keith Ape cross over to the US. He now hopes that he can do the same for mainstream adoption of NFTs.

I find the project a bit confusing.

WeChat with a TikTok user-interface? Okay dude.

Op3n claims to be an app that makes it simple for producers to leverage web3 technology to communicate with followers, with a user experience similar to TikTok. Users choose a creator’s profile and link their wallet to purchase an NFT, which grants access to more material to the fan.

It’s pretty cringe to see the NFT creator material that’s coming.

"I've been in this music, movie, entertainment, media space for 20 years," he said by phone. "So it's leveraging those relationships, and now introducing Hollywood and the music industry to NFTs."

For Ava Labs president John Wu, this initiative represents a chance to increase Avalanche's cultural cache in a world where Ethereum and Bitcoin dominate public perception of crypto.

John is a Harvard MBA graduate. Looks like a trustworthy human. Eh, sadly not so much.

“The Avalanche Foundation’s Culture Catalyst Initiative with Op3n marks a watershed moment for entertainment and pop culture applications on Avalanche," he said in a statement.

I’m starting to think Creator Funds are a sham. Digging into them today has been pretty sad. From LinkedIn to Avalanche, there’s a lot of rhetoric here and very poor implementation. Hopefully Avalanche can prove me wrong. Some personal brands on Instagram can still earn a living.

Grimes is doing what? On Friday, she was scheduled to make the announcement by videolink at the Avalanche Summit in Barcelona. Elon, did you know about this?

This is among the worst PR I’ve ever seen from the Web 3.0 community.

Thanks for reading!