Author: Meow, Founder of Jupiter
Compiled: Luffy, Foresight News
An open and diverse mindset has taught me one thing: the hardest and perhaps most important thing is to figure out what you really want. Without this clarity, I am easily trapped in endless pain and uncertainty with the people I care most about.
Similarly, I believe that the lack of clarity around Jupuary (note: Jupiter's airdrop activity) and Jupiter's broader goals may lead to a lot of conflicts between the stakeholders I care most about (the community, users, and of course the team).
Jupuary is an unprecedented event that requires voters to work together to "make the cake bigger". If we don't communicate well about this, we will run into big problems.
This article aims to explain in detail and clearly the goals we hope Jupiter, Jupuary and JUP will achieve, and to propose a clear process to understand what each of us wants.
But first, let's briefly introduce Jupiter.
Jupiter's Fundamentals
Let's start with a simple statement that may have been obscured by the recent controversies and confusion surrounding Jupiter: Jupiter is in great shape.
Over the past three years, we have invested heavily to ensure that our foundations are solid in all key areas (team, capital, tokens, community, creativity).
On the team side, we have demonstrated the ability to continuously deliver world-class platforms: building the top crypto aggregator, one of the largest decentralized exchanges (reaching $140 billion in trading volume in less than 12 months), and pioneering a token launch platform based on a new liquidity model. We are also constantly experimenting with new products, such as Jup Mobile and ApePro, which have gained widespread recognition within a month of launch.
In addition to being able to launch high-quality products, I am confident that we have one of the most united and honest teams in the crypto space. Here's a short story:
When I realized the community was concerned about our high FDV, I proposed to the team that we destroy 30% of the total JUP supply. Seeing them unanimously agree to destroy a large portion of their own shares (600 million tokens) and also agree to lock up their initial cliff, not selling most of their vested tokens, I was deeply moved.
You may find many teams in crypto willing to do this, but our team agreed to it without hesitation, because they really want to assure the community and each other that we will be here building.
Secondly, Jupiter's financial fundamentals are very strong. Currently, we have around $150 million in assets in our treasury, coming from our initial launch fund pool and a cash-flow positive business with multiple revenue streams.
We are very disciplined with costs, which means we don't need to sell any JUP to fund operations. Our strong financial foundation allows us to think, act and build for the future proactively. This mindset is more akin to a fast-growing startup than a typical crypto project, which tends to focus on laying the best possible foundation for a long journey ahead, rather than depleting potential early on.
Third, the JUP token is one of the most interesting experiments in governance. We have empowered it with real power to decide the direction of the Jupiverse, not just symbolic power. The upcoming Jupuary vote is a prime example. We want to build long-term market trust in the token, and we have to earn it, which is why we do things like transparency audits and the C.A.T. contract. The whole process is organic, unlike the 99.9999% bullshit you see elsewhere, it's really what you see is what you get.
Fourth, we have one of the most active communities in the crypto space. We are the world's largest DAO, with over 260,000 independent voters. More importantly, we are the world's most engaged DAO, with each vote sparking community discussions that bring our community closer together. We have also pioneered an innovative distributed execution model in our decentralized working groups. Each working group works openly, benefits the community, and is fully accountable to the DAO. They work alongside the team, playing a critical role in expanding and enriching the Jupiverse.
Finally, and crucially, our community is united and supportive of the key ideas and ethos that can make the crypto ecosystem, and even the world, better: PPP (player pump player) has been adopted by dozens of communities globally as a battle cry to improve the crypto experience. CAT (certainty, alignment, transparency) has the entire industry focused on building openly rather than privately. And J4J (Jup for Jup) has become a battle cry that brings community members together to contribute their time and talents in exchange for ownership of the protocol.
These five fundamentals - a talented and dedicated team, a strong financial position, widely distributed governance tokens, a vibrant and thriving community, and the best ideas - put us in an unparalleled position to build the world we want to see.
What's Next?
We don't want to be another DeFi protocol, nor do we want to follow the conventional script of how crypto projects should evolve. We are also not interested in the various arguments about fat wallets, fat protocols, and fat layers, nor the traditional views on token economics.
Of course, we will read, learn, absorb and adapt, but fundamentally, we want to carve our own path, find what works for us now, and do our best to make it happen.
We firmly believe that in the coming decades, crypto will underpin the world's progress, including in backend infrastructure, value creation, and all user-facing financial tools.
We hope that Jupiter can be a key participant in building critical infrastructure, setting the ideas and ethos of this space, and driving the development of decentralized systems.
To achieve this goal, we need the best team, the best platform, the best ethos, the best culture, the best ideas; and of course, we need the strongest community to make it happen.
This is where Jupuary comes in.
The Role of Jupuary: Accelerate, Decentralize, Unify
Looking back at the first Jupuary, we believe it was one of the most well-executed and far-reaching airdrops in the crypto space. Crucially, it ignited the hearts and minds of our community and brought together a large group of passionate and talented people.
Implemented strategically, Jupuary has immense potential to attract the right talent into the ecosystem and accelerate community development.
If done well, Jupuary will play three key roles in the progress of the Jupiverse: acceleration, decentralization, and unification.
Jupuary Accelerates Community Formation
Traditionally, people have viewed community as the marketing of a product. We are completely different, we believe that the product is the marketing of the community.
We don't like the idea of using products to give away tokens. We believe people should use products because they are useful, not because of the tokens.
The goal of Jupuary is to invite people who are already familiar with Jupiter to become active participants in the community and DAO.
We invite those who understand and value the Jupiter ethos to join Jupuary, which greatly accelerates the formation of an active group who can see and appreciate our spirit and the efforts we are making for the ecosystem, partners and users.
Jupuary is a Large-Scale Decentralization Event
Many major protocols tend to release information internally, often quietly through multiple channels. Jupuary aims to break this trend and take the completely opposite approach.
We choose to release information to the community in the most open way, even though it may generate more controversy, so that we can expand the community and unite the core members who champion the Jupiter spirit.
Jupuary is an Event to Unify the Community
It is usually extremely difficult to get an entire community, especially a large one like Jupiter's, to understand and continuously evolve a project under a shared vision.
Jupuary will become an important milestone for the community and the broader ecosystem to discuss, challenge and align on Jupiter's vision, which will deepen their understanding of the things we care about.
This is why voting is necessary. Jupuary will bring a lot of attention to the Jupiverse. It will bring energy from all corners of Solana. It will help to get more community members, more suggestions (catdets), and more goodwill for the Jupiverse.
But the prerequisite is that we all agree on the best practices. This decision is very important for the future of Jupiter and cannot be decided by a few. Instead, we must find a way to reach a consensus in the community on how to expand the cake.
We are building Jupiter together, and in this critical period, we must unite and work together.
Jupuary Voting Procedure
The goal of Jupuary is simple: to build a large-scale, united community by 2025 to collectively address the next phase of Jupiter.
This vote will have a special threshold of 70% approval. The threshold is high because we need to unite the community, and we will iterate the proposal repeatedly until we reach a result that we all agree on.
If we do not reach the threshold in the first vote, that's fine. We will incorporate feedback and work with the team to propose updated proposals, and we will continue to work until 70% of the community members agree.
The purpose of this vote is to find a way forward. Therefore, it is crucial that you vote with your true decision: do not choose "yes" just because you want to support, and do not choose "no" because of criticism on Twitter.
We are determined to find a result that truly satisfies the community, and this will take some time.
Outline of the First Round of Voting
For the first round of voting, we will start with a very simple question: is the community willing to accept another 2 rounds of 700 million JUP Jupuary activities?
Based on feedback over the past few weeks, we have also identified the top-level design goals for the first Jupuary:
Our goal is to make the entire process as inclusive as possible, so that every key stakeholder feels included.
Our goal is to attract genuine people and active users who are likely to understand our vision and join our growth journey. While quantity is certainly a consideration, it will not be the focus of this Jupuary.
There will be no locking or vesting. We need to end each Jupuary with a highly aligned and unified community, and we cannot tolerate those who fundamentally do not want to be a part of it.
We will also invest heavily in witch attack detection, implement higher minimum thresholds, require human proof before claiming, and so on.
Additionally, we hope to have 2 more Jupuary activities, as we believe that community and team certainty is very important in the coming years.
Jupuary is to "Grow the Pie", not to "Divide the Pie"
Some believe that they cannot vote because they do not know the exact criteria of their vote. But I cannot let the vote turn into an activity of dividing the pie, where people only vote for what they can get themselves.
Jupuary is fundamentally a process of "growing the pie", and voting must be based on fundamental principles. Each voter votes based on the high-level direction, mutual trust, and trust in the team, to achieve long-term collective interests. The exact distribution will ultimately be determined by the team.
What Happens After the Vote?
If the vote passes, it means the community is satisfied with the proposal, and the crypto world will witness for the first time a community coming together to decide on a major expansion event. The team now needs to be able to plan and execute the next two Jupuary in advance. This will greatly reduce the uncertainty faced by the community and allow Jupiter to execute its expansion plans.
If it does not pass, we will listen to your feedback, iterate on the proposal, and re-initiate the vote. I will spare no effort to strive for a result that satisfies the community. It may be tiring, but I really believe this is a force for good.
If we cannot reach a clear agreement by the end of the year, the tokens will be held in the community multi-signature wallet, and we will propose a completely different plan.
Remember, there is no right or wrong here, just vote for what you think is best for the long-term.
3 Milestones
In putting forth these proposals and plans, I have considered 3 milestones: Castanet 2025, Checkpoint 2027, and EOTD (End Of The Day).
1. Castanet 2025
Castanet 2025, which will be held at the end of January, will be an important milestone for us, where we will gather the most important members of the Jupiverse, celebrate the progress, discuss future plans, and of course, have a cat burning ceremony.
I am determined to build a larger community by the end of Castanet 2025, a united and confident community that is ready to face the new year, regardless of price trends. This is the main reason I have decided not to lock the JUP distributed in this Jupuary. But the key risk is that we "force" people to bet and vote, which is the worst outcome.
2. Checkpoint 2027
In the past three years, we have built a very solid foundation, and I would like to ask the community to support us for another two years to lay the perfect foundation for realizing our vision for the Jupiverse.
In the coming years, I will work tirelessly with the team to create the best platform, business, and distribution to realize our vision of aggregating everything, and bring our ideas and spirit to the forefront of world culture.
Additionally, by then, the 2 rounds of Jupuary (if passed) will have been completed, and the current ASR will also have been completed, and the core of the community will have been smoothly formed.
During this period, we will also strive to fully unleash the potential of JUP as a meme and platform token. Of course, by then, our goal is to have JUP widely distributed and trusted by hundreds of millions of people.
This will be the best time for the Jupiverse to assess our position and plan for the next phase.
Finally, we are fully committed to this strategy, and we will deliver on our promises. The founding team will not sell any JUP before this Checkpoint to ensure we are fully dedicated to meeting any community requirements.
End Of The Day (Final)
Going back to the question I posed at the beginning: what kind of person do I ultimately want to become? What am I doing all this for?
Doing these things publicly, constantly deferring my own results, and then painfully building up all the key pieces one by one and gluing them together, is indeed a formidable task.
It took me a very long time to become clear, but now I am actually very clear, and I want to make it clear, so that everyone knows exactly where I stand, and then they can make their own decisions.
Simply put, I hope we can be in the best position to collectively create the world we want to see. I have a lot of dissatisfaction with the current state of the crypto industry.
We've been saying that crypto is better, but are we really more transparent than banks, more accountable than governments, or more socially friendly than big monopolies?
We've been talking about acceleration, but what exactly are we accelerating towards?
Accelerating towards a world where anything goes as long as you can make money, or playing PVP games, or enriching insiders, is not the world I want to accelerate towards.
But even though I don't agree, I'm also very pragmatic. To have a voice, Jupiter must become one of the key winners, the Jupiverse must become a cultural force, and JUP must become a major token in the crypto world.
To make JUP achieve this goal, we need to: become a symbol of transparency, with a record of every JUP token issued since genesis, have the support of the most united community in the world, and become one of the most important platform tokens.
Will we get there immediately? Of course not. Will the journey be simple and straightforward? Of course not. Will it be foolproof? Of course not.
But will we work together? Of course. Am I willing to work together with all my JUP partners towards this goal? Of course. Do I want to one day ride a big yacht with all my JUP partners? Of course.
I will strive to achieve this goal, and regardless of success or failure, I will strive to realize it publicly. Perhaps this is the journey I ultimately want.
