How it’ll bring blockchain to a billion Telegram users

Once people see what’s already possible in Telegram, everything changes, says Martin Masser, Head of Growth at the TON Foundation.

The Open Network (TON) has rapidly evolved from an experimental blockchain project into a growing ecosystem embedded within Telegram. With integrated wallets, payments, and mini apps, TON’s daily activity has surged, making it one of the few Layer-1 networks tied directly to a mainstream platform.

At the center of this expansion is Masser, who explains how TON is leveraging Telegram’s global audience to onboard the next generation of crypto users. “Whenever I do talks, I ask the audience who’s on Telegram, and every hand goes up,” he says. “It’s powerful — you already have this enormous, active user base that spends time there every day.”

For Masser, the appeal is clear: “So from that perspective, it’s the logical blockchain for Telegram. The way TON is built — with sharding and scalability in mind — fits perfectly. You use Telegram? Great. TON is the blockchain that Telegram has chosen, and it’s integrated everywhere.”

What’s missing, he notes, is awareness. Many users don’t realize the ecosystem is already live. Once they discover it, they’re amazed at how much they can do inside Telegram without leaving the app — from seamless payments and NFTs to casual blockchain gaming and mini apps.

In the following interview, Masser dives into TON’s unique advantages, developer opportunities, and creative initiatives, including the Sera Space Program, a first-of-its-kind community-driven space mission accessible through Telegram.

Crypto.news: TON’s integration with Telegram puts it in a unique position when it comes to attracting users. How does this position look like from your perspective?

Martin Masser: Whenever I do talks, I ask the audience who’s on Telegram, and every hand goes up. You can’t really go to a crypto conference and find someone who isn’t using it. That’s what makes it so powerful — you already have this enormous, active user base that spends time there every day.

It’s not just that people have the app installed; for most users, Telegram is in their top three apps. I’ve done this test with journalists — I tell them, “Check your iPhone. What are your top three apps?” It’s always something like Chrome, Telegram, and X. That tells you how central it is to people’s digital lives.

So from that perspective, it’s the logical blockchain for Telegram. The way TON is built — with sharding and scalability in mind — fits perfectly. It’s different from other blockchains in some ways, with both pros and cons, but for me, it’s the easiest story in crypto to explain: “You use Telegram? Great. TON is the blockchain that Telegram has chosen, and it’s integrated everywhere.”

What’s missing is awareness. People often don’t realize it’s already there. Once they do, they’re amazed by how much they can actually do inside Telegram without leaving the app.

Crypto.news: Since awareness is missing, are there any mini apps or use cases you recommend?

Masser: That’s always a tricky question because, as someone from the Foundation, I have to be careful not to single out projects. The last time I mentioned one I liked, people said I shouldn’t be seen favoring anything. [laughs] But I’ll give you a few examples anyway.

If you like gaming, there’s a lot happening. You’ve got Goat Gaming, Dropy, and TON Battlegrounds, which is a first-person shooter built as a mini app. It loads directly inside Telegram — no downloads, no setup. You can play a few rounds and go about your day.

There’s also Sixers Cricket, which looks great. What’s exciting is that developers are starting to explore how to merge Telegram’s social reach with blockchain features like NFTs. It’s similar to how Facebook once had casual games like FarmVille — you could jump in for a few minutes, but now it’s on-chain.

The key difference is friction. In the old GameFi model, you had to connect a wallet, sign transactions, jump through hoops — most people dropped off before even playing. On Telegram, it’s one click. You connect your TON wallet, and you’re in.

That’s the breakthrough: casual, seamless blockchain gaming that feels like normal mobile gaming. You can move from DeFi to NFTs to payments all within one ecosystem. As a Foundation, our job now is to make sure more people see what’s already possible inside Telegram.

Crypto.news: When it comes to these games, what’s the Web3 angle? What’s the advantage of having them on TON instead of, say, Facebook or another traditional platform?

Masser: The original idea behind blockchain gaming was that everything you did in a game would be on-chain — every move, every click. But that doesn’t make much sense in practice. You don’t need every tiny action recorded on the blockchain.

What does make sense is integrating NFTs and digital collectibles in a meaningful way. For example, projects like Sappy Seals have done a great job letting people use collectibles inside the game. You might own certain Telegram stickers or NFTs that give you an extra level, a new skin, or a few more chances in the game.

It’s about adding utility to digital items that people already own and care about. Communities are experimenting with different models — some give collectibles away, others sell them, and some use them for access or reputation. The point is that these NFTs actually do something now.

We’ve got things like Score Suite, which is about to do a big sticker sale with licensed sports IPs. They realized fans would buy digital stickers of famous cricketers, play the games more, and build an economy around that. That’s what excites me — not NFTs for their own sake, but NFTs that tie into real engagement and activity.

Crypto.news: What about use cases beyond gaming? What’s something people might find genuinely useful but maybe haven’t heard about yet?

Masser: I think the biggest one is sending crypto instantly through Telegram. You can send USDT or TON directly in a chat. I can literally message Alex right now, type “@push 1 USDT,” and send him a dollar instantly.

People are using it for simple, real-world things — like splitting a restaurant bill. Someone told me they were in New York, and Revolut didn’t work, Venmo didn’t work, but both people had USDT. I said, “You’re both on Telegram — just send it.” It’s seamless.

That’s a real use case: frictionless, cross-border payments. If you’re in Croatia and I’m in London, I can send you USDT instantly through Telegram. No middlemen, no fees, no setup headaches.

Crypto.news: So the only thing you need is to deposit some crypto in your Telegram wallet?

Masser: Exactly. You fund your wallet once, and if someone sends you crypto for the first time, Telegram automatically generates a wallet for you. Depending on your region, it might be custodial or non-custodial, but it’s simple.

After that, you can send or receive USDT, TON (TON), NFTs — even stake tokens. The idea is to give users the core tools, then let the ecosystem innovate on top of them. Once people see how easy it is, they start imagining new things — like yield-bearing tokens you can send directly in chat. It opens up endless possibilities.

Crypto.news: When you talk to developers, what do you highlight as the main benefits of building on TON? And what kind of feedback or concerns do you get from them?

Masser: The first thing developers notice is how naturally everything connects through Telegram. When they reach out to us, it’s usually on Telegram. They’re already there — talking to their users, running communities, managing projects. So for them, it’s about asking, “How can we build something right inside the app where everyone already spends time?”

That’s the appeal. They get immediate reach and distribution. You can share a mini app in a group chat, and suddenly hundreds or thousands of people are playing or using it within seconds. It’s social, frictionless, and viral.

We’ve seen that most growth comes through referrals. Someone says, “Hey, check out this game,” drops the link, and everyone in the chat joins instantly. I think around 90% or more of new users come through that kind of word-of-mouth sharing.

Of course, there are still some pain points. Documentation and onboarding for developers need to improve — we’re working on that. The Foundation is updating resources and tutorials to make it clearer how to build mini apps, integrate TON, or launch stickers and collectibles. We don’t just want to say, “Here’s a billion users — go build.” We need to make sure they have the tools and support to succeed.

Another big challenge is awareness. When I speak at events, I’ll ask the room, “Who here uses Telegram?” Every hand goes up. Then I ask, “Who’s used a mini app?” Maybe two or three hands. But when I ask, “Who’s played Hamster Kombat?” suddenly 70% raise their hands — and they don’t even realize that’s a mini app.

People think they’re just using a web page inside Telegram. Once they understand it’s an actual in-app experience powered by TON, everything clicks. That’s why I’m doing interviews like this — to bridge that awareness gap.

Once people understand the overlap between Telegram and TON — what each does and how they complement each other — more builders come in. And when good builders arrive, the ecosystem grows naturally. We saw that with Notcoin: it took off, inspired a wave of follow-up projects, and suddenly the whole ecosystem accelerated.

Crypto.news: Do you think that a part of the accessibility issue is Telegram’s evolution into a ‘super app’? There’s so much going on there that it can almost feel overwhelming. Do you have any insights into how Telegram is dealing with this question?

Masser: Telegram and TON are separate entities, so I can’t really comment on their internal product roadmap. What I can say is that the Telegram team is obviously very aware of how their app is being used — they live in it every day.

From what we’ve seen, their turnaround on updates is incredibly fast. They’re constantly improving things, releasing new features, and iterating quickly. But since we’re not the same organization, it wouldn’t be right for me to speak for them or speculate on what they’re working on next.

Crypto.news: What are some of the things you or the broader TON and Telegram ecosystem are most excited about right now, technically or creatively?

Masser: Personally, I’m really excited about Telegram Gifts. What’s really interesting is how whole economies are now forming around them. You’ve got marketplaces like TON Market and TON Portal where users can buy, sell, and even rent out their gifts.

Once you have that foundation — unique digital items that people actually care about — developers start building new layers of functionality. Games are integrating them, creators are distributing them, and users are forming entire communities around specific collectibles.

It reminds me a bit of the early iPhone era. When the iPhone first launched, the real innovation didn’t happen immediately — it came a couple of years later when people started building things that could only exist because of the iPhone, like Uber. TON and Telegram are now at that same point.

We’re seeing similar ripple effects here. The gift economy connects directly with gaming, creators, and marketplaces. Someone mints a collectible, another builds a mini app around it, and a third project creates a way to trade or stake it. Suddenly, you’ve got this self-sustaining digital economy running inside Telegram.

And then there’s the creator side. Telegram has always been strong among creators — journalists, influencers, and analysts. They tend to post on X, but they build communities on Telegram. It’s where their most loyal followers are.

Now, with collectibles, stickers, and payments, those creators can finally monetize directly. I have my own channel, and people can tip me with Telegram Stars or send gifts as a thank-you. It’s simple, and it actually works.

That’s something you can’t do on other platforms unless you reach massive scale. On Telegram, even smaller creators can start earning right away. They can set up paid messages, offer exclusive groups, or build NFT-gated channels — all without leaving the app.

Crypto.news: You mentioned stickers earlier — how do they fit into this ecosystem?

Masser: Stickers are another fascinating piece. Some are off-chain, but the ones created through Fuse, Telegram’s official sticker store, are minted on-chain using the NFT 2.0 standard.

What’s special about NFT 2.0 is automatic royalties. In older NFT models, creators had to rely on marketplaces to enforce royalties. Here, it’s built directly into the token itself. Every time that sticker is traded, the creator gets paid.

That gives artists a reason to keep projects alive and valuable. Instead of abandoning a collection once it sells out, they have a financial incentive to keep engaging their audience and adding new content. It makes the whole system more sustainable for creators.

So between Stars, gifts, collectibles, and NFTs with baked-in royalties, you’re seeing a real, functioning creator economy emerge inside Telegram — powered by TON, but accessible to anyone, even those who’ve never used a blockchain wallet before.

Crypto.news: Is there anything else you’d like to add or mention?

Masser: Yes, actually — I’d love to mention the Sera Space Program. It’s an exciting initiative we’re running that gives people a chance to participate in a real space mission. We’ve got six seats on Blue Origin, and five of them are reserved for people from countries that don’t usually get the opportunity to take part in space programs — places like Nigeria, Brazil, and India, among others.

To put it in perspective, Justin Sun reportedly paid $28 million for a Blue Origin seat. Here, we’re opening the door for six people from the community, chosen through on-chain voting on TON, using Telegram as the interface.

It’s not just symbolic — users will actually be able to vote on the experiments that get conducted in space. We call it the people’s space program because it’s about giving global communities direct input in something that was once out of reach.

What’s even better is that it’s not just individuals campaigning on their own. Communities are forming around candidates, rallying support, and voting together. So, say there’s a Croatian participant — the whole Dinamo Zagreb fan community could get behind him, send votes, and maybe even see their guy take a Croatian flag into space.

That’s the kind of global, participatory energy TON and Telegram make possible. We’re connecting people across borders, using blockchain not as a buzzword but as real infrastructure for collaboration and access.