TADA Launches Telegram Mini App, TON Developers Expect Disruption Due to Airdrop Season

Southeast Asian ride-hailing service TADA has launched a new mini app on Telegram in collaboration with the TON Foundation.

This feature enables users to book rides directly within the Telegram messaging app and make payments using Toncoin or USDT on the TON blockchain.

This partnership seeks to speed up the adoption of web3 technologies by incorporating them into widely-used web2 platforms. ​TADA, powered by MVL, is a ride-hailing platform serving Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia.

"At TADA, we’ve always focused on innovations that benefit both riders and drivers. Looking ahead, TADA mini plans to expand into new regions, aiming to provide this service to a wider audience,” said James Yang, CIO of MVL, the parent company of TADA.

Starting on September 14 until September 18 in Singapore, TADA and the TON Foundation will provide 4,000 free rides at the TOKEN2049 crypto conference to promote this new service.

"If we want to accelerate the successful adoption of web3 solutions, it's crucial that strong partnerships are forged with exciting web2 platforms that enable their users to quickly become familiar with the many benefits of web3," said Harvey Kim, Head of Korea at the TON Foundation.

This announcement from TON came after developers cautioned about the potential disruption of TON following airdrops from 'Hamster Kombat' and 'Catizen'.

"The network will undoubtedly face more technical pressures and possibly some unforeseen issues, "said the team.

As of 6th September 2024, Catizen’s in-game revenue has surpassed $20 million generating over 750k paying user base from 33 million players.

Meanwhile, TON developers are warning its users that airdrop season might throttle the network. Daily active user addresses over the past two weeks on TON have repeatedly surpassed 1.1 million, with single-day transactions reaching a high of 14.4 million. This spike comes in anticipation of airdrops for popular tap-to-earn games like Hamster Kombat and Catizen.

"These levels of user engagement were unimaginable in Web3 before," the TON Core team wrote in an official Telegram channel. "The network will undoubtedly face more technical pressures and possibly some unforeseen issues, but we are unwavering in our commitment to building and addressing these challenges as we move toward mass adoption."

The warning follows recent service disruptions on the network, driven by a surge in tap-to-earn gaming and mini app activity linked to the Telegram messaging app.

Last month, TON blockchain network experienced a significant disruption on Wednesday morning (SGT), likely due to an overwhelming influx of transactions related to the launch of a new memecoin, DOGS currently held by 4.5M unique wallets on TON.

The core team reaffirmed their dedication, emphasizing that they remain steadfast in tackling these challenges as they progress toward mass adoption.