# Friend.Tech Devs Abandon Once-Hot SocialFi Platform

*Author: David Christopher*
*Published: Sep 9, 2024*
*Source: https://www.bankless.com/friend-tech-dead*

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On Sunday, Friend.Tech’s developers gave up control of the platform's smart contracts, blocking future updates, and essentially closing down.

## What's the scoop?
- **Initial Success:** Launched on Base in August 2023, Friend.Tech quickly surpassed Ethereum in daily earnings by mid-September and secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Paradigm.
- **Decline in Activity:** The protocol [struggled after its initial success](https://www.theblock.co/post/315172/friend-tech-team-renounces-control-of-smart-contracts-following-stagnant-growth), and despite the Version 2 update and airdrop, protocol fees stalled, with only $60K earned since June.
- **Locked System:** The contract revocation prevents new teams from taking over, signaling an unlikely revival for the platform.

## Bankless Take: 
Friend.Tech's rise and fall reflect the difficulty of discovering the proper implementations of the long-sought-after “SocialFi.” While at first it captured significant attention, the platform couldn’t restore its momentum with V2, which came with a lackluster airdrop and a fraction of the [features initially teased](https://www.bankless.com/socialfi-friendtech-v2). The future of Friend.Tech felt grim when the team announced they would build [FriendChain, its own L2](https://www.bankless.com/friend-tech-plans-to-launch-friendchain), but now, with the developers renouncing control, stopping anyone else from taking over the project, *any* path forward seems essentially nonexistent. 

[![](https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXe41zuOFRJ85lDItFWJgUxBnRuYP2Snyo851eygcLsYqs8Yuym4j8OC8eB6KwWC3zmWp_MvrTYMamLqthbdToD1OeevIqqUZNF1i15j8LEol6mq1I-yQEOMQvQ72xkR_re0i1wMAQJ_KTLs5OZ1uzqES9lU?key=KhStOUzvZSawB86ftSeRlw)](https://defillama.com/protocol/friend.tech#information)
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