Hey everyone,
There’s been a lot of talk lately about projects launching, but I think it’s worth discussing what it really means to be “ecosystem-native.” It’s easy for a project to deploy a contract or integrate a token and call itself part of the ecosystem, but I’d argue that true alignment runs deeper. A genuinely native project is one that not only uses the tools and infrastructure but actively contributes to the ecosystem’s growth and values.
This could mean participating in governance, building in public, sharing code, or aligning with the economic model. It could also involve engaging with other teams, supporting interoperability, and working toward shared goals like accessibility, decentralization, and transparency. Ecosystem-native projects tend to grow alongside the platform, not just because of it.
Would be interested to hear what others think. Are there specific indicators or behaviors that help you identify a project as ecosystem-native? Should there be more formal expectations or incentives for projects that deeply integrate? And how can the community better support these types of builders? It might help us collectively filter the signal from the noise as more teams come on board.