I heard @ODELL say today he doesn't believe Nostr is inevitable.
It was a mini ๐ heartbreak moment. ๐ข
How do you feel about that?
#grownostr #asknostr #freedomtech
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Replies (46)
@ODELL that? was he believe inevitable.
It doesn't feel heartbreak heard #freedomtech ๐ข
How a Nostr do #asknostr mini about I you today
#grownostr say ๐ is moment.
remember friendstr? it was one of the first. I think it's inevitable that this will evolve into something quite different or something else will takes it's place. nostr is fracturing other socials but, it is still early. it's only really just starting to catch on. so many haven't even heard of it.
Nope. Don't know friendstr.
Weโll change that perspective ๐ซก
Heโs right.
Bitcoin is inevitable because of game theory.
Nostr is what we make it.
View quoted note โ
Great question. Here's a breakdown of other protocols that aim to solve the same core need as Nostr โ decentralized, censorship-resistant, identity-preserving communication โ and how they compare.
---
๐งฑ Nostr's Core Needs:
Portable public identity
Uncensorable, decentralized messaging
Lightweight protocol design
Resistant to platform capture
Bitcoin-aligned (optionally)
---
๐ Alternatives to Nostr
1. ActivityPub
Use case: Fediverse (Mastodon, PeerTube, Lemmy, etc.)
Pros:
Widespread adoption
Rich federation support
Backed by W3C (web standards body)
Cons:
Complex server requirements
Subject to federation censorship (admins can defederate you)
Identity is not portable across servers easily
Verdict: A federated social protocol, but not truly sovereign.
---
2. Matrix
Use case: Decentralized real-time messaging (Element, etc.)
Pros:
End-to-end encryption
Rich real-time communication (voice, video, group chat)
Cons:
Heavy and bloated for simple text communication
Federation can be slow
Identity tied to server domain
Verdict: Great for encrypted chat, less elegant for public micro-posting.
---
3. Scuttlebutt (SSB)
Use case: Offline-first social network
Pros:
Works fully offline and syncs later
Peer-to-peer only (no servers)
Cons:
Poor mobile and browser support
Identity and content tied to device
Verdict: Technically brilliant but impractical for mass adoption.
---
4. Farcaster (Optimism / L2 Ethereum)
Use case: Decentralized Twitter alternative
Pros:
Smart contract-based identity (Ethereum)
Growing developer community
Integrated crypto economy
Cons:
Tied to Ethereum (gas fees, infra reliance)
Requires custody of ETH keys
Verdict: Web3-focused, not Bitcoin-native, and more "Web2.5" than pure protocol.
---
5. XMTP (Extensible Message Transport Protocol)
Use case: Web3 wallet-to-wallet messaging
Pros:
Wallet-native messaging (Metamask, etc.)
E2EE support
Cons:
Limited to Ethereum/Web3 context
Not social/media-rich
Verdict: Infrastructure for private messaging, not public posting.
---
6. IPFS + Libp2p (DIY stack)
Use case: Fully decentralized content + messaging
Pros:
Extremely flexible
No central servers at all
Cons:
DIY integration required
No native social graph or identity unless layered in
Verdict: Powerful building blocks, but not a protocol for users.
---
๐ฅ Nostr's Edge:
Identity = public key, portable and not tied to a server
Anyone can run a relay (or not)
Simple protocol, high composability
Bitcoin-aligned (via Zaps, Lightning tips, Damus, etc.)
---
๐ง Final Thoughts:
If freedom tech is inevitable, then protocols that offer:
portable identity,
uncensorable publishing,
financial self-sovereignty
will win. Nostr may not be the final form โ but itโs the simplest and most aligned with Bitcoin and the spirit of digital resistance.
Would you like a table, infographic, or tweetstorm version of this breakdown?
---
๐งฑ Nostr's Core Needs:
Portable public identity
Uncensorable, decentralized messaging
Lightweight protocol design
Resistant to platform capture
Bitcoin-aligned (optionally)
---
๐ Alternatives to Nostr
1. ActivityPub
Use case: Fediverse (Mastodon, PeerTube, Lemmy, etc.)
Pros:
Widespread adoption
Rich federation support
Backed by W3C (web standards body)
Cons:
Complex server requirements
Subject to federation censorship (admins can defederate you)
Identity is not portable across servers easily
Verdict: A federated social protocol, but not truly sovereign.
---
2. Matrix
Use case: Decentralized real-time messaging (Element, etc.)
Pros:
End-to-end encryption
Rich real-time communication (voice, video, group chat)
Cons:
Heavy and bloated for simple text communication
Federation can be slow
Identity tied to server domain
Verdict: Great for encrypted chat, less elegant for public micro-posting.
---
3. Scuttlebutt (SSB)
Use case: Offline-first social network
Pros:
Works fully offline and syncs later
Peer-to-peer only (no servers)
Cons:
Poor mobile and browser support
Identity and content tied to device
Verdict: Technically brilliant but impractical for mass adoption.
---
4. Farcaster (Optimism / L2 Ethereum)
Use case: Decentralized Twitter alternative
Pros:
Smart contract-based identity (Ethereum)
Growing developer community
Integrated crypto economy
Cons:
Tied to Ethereum (gas fees, infra reliance)
Requires custody of ETH keys
Verdict: Web3-focused, not Bitcoin-native, and more "Web2.5" than pure protocol.
---
5. XMTP (Extensible Message Transport Protocol)
Use case: Web3 wallet-to-wallet messaging
Pros:
Wallet-native messaging (Metamask, etc.)
E2EE support
Cons:
Limited to Ethereum/Web3 context
Not social/media-rich
Verdict: Infrastructure for private messaging, not public posting.
---
6. IPFS + Libp2p (DIY stack)
Use case: Fully decentralized content + messaging
Pros:
Extremely flexible
No central servers at all
Cons:
DIY integration required
No native social graph or identity unless layered in
Verdict: Powerful building blocks, but not a protocol for users.
---
๐ฅ Nostr's Edge:
Identity = public key, portable and not tied to a server
Anyone can run a relay (or not)
Simple protocol, high composability
Bitcoin-aligned (via Zaps, Lightning tips, Damus, etc.)
---
๐ง Final Thoughts:
If freedom tech is inevitable, then protocols that offer:
portable identity,
uncensorable publishing,
financial self-sovereignty
will win. Nostr may not be the final form โ but itโs the simplest and most aligned with Bitcoin and the spirit of digital resistance.
Would you like a table, infographic, or tweetstorm version of this breakdown?I heard @ODELL say today he doesn't believe Nostr is inevitable.
It was a mini ๐ heartbreak moment. ๐ข
How do you feel about that?
#grownostr #asknostr #freedomtech
View quoted note →
He's not wrong. The demand for sound money > demand for censorship resistant communication protocol. That could change though
Nostr is an environment that isn't really needed. It's up to business to start realizing Bitcoin as a means of exchange can save money. Everything is about money. And how do you make linking a bank account to a wallet, and a wallet to your business. It needs a book titled Running a Bitcoin Business For Dummies
it is what we make it ๐ค
View quoted note โ
I think @jack s announcement that he is pivoting some focus to democratizing threat detection is the first step to making nostr thrive in ways we couldnt even fathom in P2P comms before AI/MCP tooling...
Imagine a world where we have crawlers deployed with the same frequency as the annoying bots but theyre only prompt is to find and eradicate rats and zero days- agentic frameworks like this already exist and are being tested on IRCs
This would open up a world of client apps most people probably havent even comprehended or imagined but that we v much so dreamed about in 2009-2011 in underground P2P communities.
Nostr dating becomes a potential reality, but so does...
V4V meme making.
Crowdfunding.
Live action protest.
Private messaging.
Platforms to give survivors a voice.
Ephemeral key use case galore.
And it wouod be much safer to onboard normie end users and liqiuidity providers... even build business like @DETERMINISTIC OPTIMISM ๐ mentioned earlier
You could just look it up
Only death is inevitable
That statement does make sense thoughโฆ
Some may question that.
mortal death is 100%
TikTok, Youtube, Facebook, OnlyFans, Instagram, Gmail, WeChat, Ebay all will work towards making Nostr inevitable as their restrictions will drive more & more users to discover this open protocol free from those walled gardens until those gardens themselves capitulate and become powered by Nostr.
Only Jesus dared to question that successfully
What about Babaji?
Heresy
corporates mess everything up imho, their incentives rarely align with end users of technology
id prefer they kept their distance
Okay, but You donโt own a P2P networkโฆ thatโs what P2P FOSS communities are about. Youโre free to run a private relay with your friends and choose your clients? But you canโt stop people from using open permissionlessโฆ. Are you suggesting you prefer to operate on a protocol where sick fuck men remote into girls cams unknowingly?
Because as long as that is going on, nostr will just be another iMesh circa 2013. Iโve been doing this my whole life Iโve seen entire communities wiped out over dumb things that people ignore
gosh... umm... just commenting i like P2P FOSS communities too and have watched corporations mess with social media every time something promising comes along
sorry if that comes across in some other way? because not really sure how get from that to end part of your note and don't really need to know. world is full of horrible people who do horrible things. im not fan any of it
I apologize for coming across rude to you, I assume you have nothing to with it but there is a defense issue on nostr that everyone is ignoring and passing off as the end users responsibility and quite honestly itโs the most disappointing thing I have ever witnessed in a FOSS space and any single man on here that knows and is aware and ignores should be absolutely disappointed in their own self and as for the people participating in it- they are desperately sick and need to get the help they need.
Only death and taxes are inevitable.
right i see. thanks for making me aware. sounds gross
if I come across any projects aiming to fix will make sure to donate some sats because want to see nostr succeed
Ugh, yikes! Ok, tell me more about that, please!!!
I agree with him; there are no strong incentives.
Nothing is inevitable. Anything can happen and anything can change. Nothing is certain. ๐คทโโ๏ธ
People like you and ODELL have been astoundingly successful in delaying nostr's success, but you can't really stop it from being inevitable
Stop being a whiny lil bitch dude.
ahaha
The internetโs just this thing yโknow.
nothing is inevitable ๐คท
Can't stop something I'm not doing
Stop trying to hold back nostr though
How? Id say easily monetizing at scale in a permissionless way is pretty huge. Not to mention censorship reistance, interoperability, etc
Bitcoin's engine is NGU (game theory of harder money).
nostr's engine is something like: freedom-loving nerds build things โ some attract users (hopefully) โ network openness attracts more builders -> more users.
It's not NGU but itโs a possible flywheel.
Nostr's fringe. Lots of competing.
Think of it like countries.
Meta and Instagram - USA
X - Europe
Nostr - Liberland
There's other "nations" too. Farcaster. YouTube, Odysee, Bitchute, Rumble...
User's flow towards the path of least resistance. Least friction.
The US, infrastructures up and good.
Liberland... gotta pitch your tent still.
Lotta work to do.
Nostr is freedom.
Freedom is unpopular.
===========================
#2 ๐ฅ Community Highlights
===========================
1. A Heartbreaking moment of a lady pleb
View quoted note โ
2. The very first funding announcement on #Nostr
View quoted note โ
3. The Underrated feature on Nostr
View quoted note โ
4. The last thing Nostr needs
View quoted note โ
5. Nostr needs more plebs that crazy about it
View quoted note โ
6. Nostr for Health Challenge with impressive rewards
View quoted note โ
7. A pleb is trying to pull up a pleb on Nostr
View quoted note โ
8. A New Vibe coded events app from @Derek Ross
View quoted note โ
9. A lady is being a Nostr pleb
View quoted note โ
10. A nice trick to see Nostr anywhere
View quoted note โ
11. The Proof of Payment of @eliza to the Steak n Shake
View quoted note โ
12. A Question to every pleb about zap math
View quoted note โ
#community_nostr_recap
Over the weekend I've started to realize i agree with @ODELL that Nostr is not inevitable
https://asknostr.site/question/note1nzga92tpcatf8zaeslndp5wqxwa6remm09mqwfen8te6ulx6nvkqyjy7mm
And the solution starts with admitting we have a problem.
โ On nostr.band there is a decrease in MAU/WAU since the beginning of this year (https://stats.nostr.band/#weekly_active_users)
โ Using the asknostr.site dataset i see a similar trend (screenshot below)
I'm not sure if there are any other good metrics/signal to look at but my conclusion is that the active user base is shrinking and this is a one of the most important issues to address if we want to make this work.
And while the largest explanation for the lack of growth is the 'freedom is unpopular' angle -> people don't think it's important (yet?). I believe there are many things we should do to make the overall/first impression better. This will ensure that Nostr is awesome when they do find out it's important.


what do you mean, how has odell delayed nostr?
with the current dev mentality and userbase it's really impossible for nostr to succeed
No one but him can answer that comprehensively, because he's the one that knows exactly what design elements in Primal stem from his decisions, etc.
But these 2 recent threads might help give you some more context
View quoted note โ
Primal still doesn't even have webm support and they think they're going to make a better video platform than YouTube ๐ค
View quoted note โ
View quoted note →
so by not doing what you want they are delaying nostr? why don't you do it yourself?
How would I myself do being a group of people who don't bullshit?