An ad from Solana that stirred controversy was removed just 9 hours after going live, igniting a divide between the “woke” and “unwoke” factions within the crypto community on X.
On March 17, the official account for Solana on X shared a 2.5-minute advertisement. In this video, a man referred to as “America” discusses his innovative ideas—like interplanetary travel, artificial intelligence, and cryptocurrency—with a therapist. The therapist diagnoses him with “rational thinking syndrome” and encourages him to create a new gender identity instead. America, however, maintains his interest in innovation and action, while the therapist urges him to focus on pronouns rather than verbs.
The ad was taken down within 9 hours of its release, despite attracting 1.2 million views, leaving the crypto community split over its tone and message.
Many users criticized the ad as “cringe,” “toxic,” and even “offensive,” leading to various perspectives on the ongoing cultural battle in the crypto space.
One commentator speculated that the ad aimed to “highlight how the USA has awakened from the woke mind virus and is now centering on cryptocurrency,” although they stopped short of endorsing it.
Others were less serious in their take. For instance, one individual noted that there was nothing in the ad to be angry about. They suggested that if the issue were the pronoun discussion, “that’s been emphasized more over the past four years than any genuine innovation.”
Joshua Jake from Discover Crypto termed the ad “brilliant marketing.”
“All the complaints about crypto being intended to be decentralized and apolitical miss the mark. This ad was purposely cringy rage bait, and you’re all falling for it—you’re only increasing its visibility,” argued Joshua.
Supporting Jake’s assessment, disinformation researcher Mike Solana remarked:
“Have you noticed people digging into 2020 for outrageous headlines and sharing them today for rage bait? This is a sign that culture has shifted, leaving those who built identities as ‘demon slayers’ with no foes left to battle. They will eventually turn on each other.”
Another point of debate was Solana’s decision to remove the ad in the wake of community backlash, with some seeing it as an overreaction.
“The deletion shows Solana was rattled,” one observer commented, suggesting that the organization would be better off focusing on network issues instead of responding to social media turmoil.
Adam Cochran, a partner at Cinneamhain Ventures, speculated that the removal was intended to prevent further harm to the business, not out of any belief that the ad was wrong.
On the following day, the CEO of Solana Labs, Anatoly Yakovenko, released a public statement:
“The ad was poorly conceived, and it still weighs heavily on my conscience. I regret not addressing it honestly and labeling it for what it truly is—derogatory and belittling to a marginalized group. I appreciate the ecosystem developers and artists who quickly recognized the issue and spoke out, both publicly and privately. They are the only positive aspect of this entire situation. I’ll do my utmost to ensure that the Solana Foundation remains focused on its mission of decentralization and the development of open-source software, avoiding involvement in cultural disputes.”
Looking at market trends, SOL opened at $126.17 on March 17. However, shortly after the ad went live, the price dipped slightly to $125.50, ultimately closing the day at $128.28.
