I've recently seen a lot of complaints about @yugalabs on my timeline. This is a bit strange, because when everything was booming, nobody complained. Everyone was enjoying the hype, chasing fame, gaining followers, acquiring resources, seizing opportunities, and making money—all because Yuga was at the center of the industry.
When everything was going well, it was incredibly good.
Then the market cooled down, and Yuga made a major decision: they raised $400 million to truly begin building a product. They realized that attention isn't a solid foundation; it can make you rise to fame quickly, but it can also make you fall to the bottom even faster. So they abandoned the short-term "follower-gaining" strategy and instead focused on building a product with a real moat and long-term value. This product would attract more people to the industry, rather than forcing us to play an endless "I win, you lose" PvP game.
It was a risky move, but their vision was far grander than the next round of funding.
Of course, they made mistakes too. I don't think anyone would deny that. One of the biggest problems was hiring a professional CEO and expecting him/her to run a billion-dollar cryptocurrency-native company. That simply doesn't work in our space. We've all learned that lesson.
Yes, they have a lot to improve. Startup culture, storytelling, community management, and so on are all important. At ApeFest, I truly felt this energy within Apeco. When I spoke one-on-one with @HeadofApe, it was clear he was eager to make changes. But it's difficult because the leadership team isn't composed of founding members. The cryptocurrency community doesn't automatically respect you if you weren't there from the beginning.
But I've been thinking about this:
If a friend (Yuga) mentors you when things are going well, would you really abandon them when they face difficulties?
If a friend opens doors that change your career, would you really blame them now that your own career isn't going as well as expected?
I'd be angry if the team was doing nothing. But they weren't. @CryptoGarga and @mfigge are working hard, researching diligently, and genuinely wanting to create something truly valuable. The market is something no one can completely control; humanity can only do its best.
Honestly, if you've ever tried…
