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- Solana removed its controversial ad, “America is Back—Time to Accelerate,” after receiving widespread criticism from the crypto community.
- Crypto figures, including Tyler Bench and Anneri van der Merwe, condemned the ad as divisive, with some calling it toxic and offensive.
- Solana has yet to comment on the controversy, but the deleted video continues to circulate on social media.
Solana pulled its newest advert, named America is Back—Time to Speed Up, after a backlash on X from the crypto community. The recently deleted advertisement, which contained patriotic imagery and politically loaded messages, was roundly criticized as “offensive,” “cringe,” and “divisive.”
The advertiser had initially put up the ad on Monday morning (New York time), and it had rapidly gained momentum, garnering more than 1.4 million views in the evening. But it did not take long for the outrage to be sparked, especially over a contentious scene in which a young man, allegedly in therapy for “rational thinking syndrome,” said, “I want to invent technologies, not gender.”
Many in the cryptocurrency community saw the line as a gratuitous political swipe, adding fuel to criticism that the advertisement was advancing a polarizing agenda instead of promoting blockchain technology.
Crypto Figures Call Out Solana Misstep
Tyler Bench, CRO of on-chain governance platform Tally.xyz, excoriated the advertisement, likening it to unsuccessful marketing efforts by Coinbase but with a more incendiary flair.
“This might be the single most toxic piece of content I have ever consumed. It’s like an incel who hasn’t left the basement in years created the Coinbase ads,” he wrote on X.
Similarly, Anneri van der Merwe, product lead at Base, criticized the ad for contradicting crypto’s ethos of inclusivity.
“Offensive, cringe, and pandering. The base is for everyone. Solana co-opted the ‘is for everyone’ phrase last week too. This ad shows there’s still a long way to go in truly embracing that ethos,” van der Merwe noted.
Even Solana’s co-founder, Anatoly Yakovenko, distanced himself from the campaign, subtly dismissing it by suggesting that a previous “Maren” ad was far superior.
Some industry observers believe the ad was a calculated move, deliberate “rage bait,” designed to stir controversy and generate engagement. Mentor Reka, CEO of DEX protocol Avnu.Fi, suggested Solana prioritized attention over substance.
“This might be Solana’s least inventive ad ever. They went for attention over everything, and well… mission accomplished, I guess,” Reka commented.
Others, like Adam Cochran, partner at Cinneamhain Ventures, questioned the logic behind the ad’s creation, arguing it reflected an “us versus them” mentality emerging in Silicon Valley.
“The ‘mind virus’ that’s infected the nation is whatever weird circlejerk is going on in Silicon Valley where people are convinced they were oppressed and that this is cool or edgy,” Cochran said.
Solana’s Silence on the Issue
In spite of the criticism, Solana has not made any official statement on the removal of the ad. The firm has also not commented on several requests made by Decrypt. The original clip has been removed, yet it is still being shared on X, with users reposting and analyzing its meaning.
The event has brought up a question that has been brewing in the crypto community for a long time: Do blockchain projects have any business being involved in political discourse, or should they remain neutral, speaking about nothing else other than tech and adoption? For now, Solana’s latest marketing campaign seems to have backfired on it, leaving the community divided over its intentions and impact.
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