NOSTR: The Future of Social Networks

NOSTR has the potential to revolutionise social media. When I say "revolutionise," I am not merely employing a rhetorical flourish. We are talking about a complete reversal of power dynamics—taking authority away from the tech giants and returning it to the users.

The global experiment involving billions of people, known as social networks, is well underway. We have allowed a handful of fantastically powerful companies to algorithmically train us and our children, trading on our private lives. We have surrendered control over our data, which we diligently collect on their servers every day. Subsequently, we all noticed the dire consequences of this experiment, grumbled about it for a while—because it was fashionable to do so—before a sense of resignation crept into the discourse. Clearly, we are unable to give up social networks; instead, we are learning to coexist with them in a love-and-hate relationship.

A Plot Twist

However, life can surprise positively. Nothing stands still, and someone has come up with the idea of a revolution. A certain @fiatjaf (a figure wishing to remain anonymous) has offered the world an answer to the question: can we have a social network without the flaws of social media? A Facebook without Zuckerberg, devoid of manipulation, addiction, and with complete control over our data? He saw the solution in creating a social network based on a simple and open communication protocol that connects thousands of private computers. These computers form a network that anyone can easily join and participate in without anyone's permission, either under their real name or anonymously.

NOSTR (Notes and Other Stuff Transmitted by Relays)

NOSTR is not just another Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, or TikTok. In other words, it is not a centralised social network managed by a corporation and maintained on its private servers. We are not dealing with yet another trendy company and its application; we are dealing with an open communication protocol, a phenomenon of an entirely different kind.

A communication protocol is simply a set of rules for communication between two or more devices. If these rules are widely known and the source code of the protocol is made public, we refer to it as an open communication protocol. There are many examples of open communication protocols. The TCP/IP protocol underpins all internet communication. HTTPS is used for communication with websites. SMTP handles email communication, FTP manages file transfers, and Bitcoin facilitates value transfer, among others. NOSTR is a protocol that allows for the establishment of a cryptographically secure profile, the ability to follow other profiles, and communication between profiles, including conducting transactions and paying for them with Bitcoin.

What Does This Change? Well, it fixes everything we criticise about today's social networks.

User Data Belongs Solely to the User

NOSTR is decentralised, which simply means that there is no single server where all data is stored by the network's owner. NOSTR has no owner, and user data is stored in encrypted form across multiple computers. These computers are known as relays. The owners of these relays do not have actual power over user data, not only because the data is encrypted but also because users can change their relays at any time or even create their own on a computer they control at minimal cost.

As a result, users have complete control over their data. No one can collect it, sell it to advertisers, or cut off access to it.

The Community Follows the User

Applications that support the NOSTR protocol are referred to as NOSTR clients, just as programs supporting the SMTP protocol are called email clients. Similarly, we can use various NOSTR clients. Their style and appearance may differ, but the main functionalities—such as creating a profile, searching for users, sending posts, and private messages—will remain common across most of them. Individual applications may, however, offer original ways to utilise these functions or even create unique features or integrations with other environments.

Regardless of which client we choose, our data will remain unchanged. In other words, we retain our network of connections and history; in every client, we will have the same profile, the same list of people we follow and who follow us, as well as our posts and private messages.

This is hard to overstate. Transitioning from one traditional social media platform to another is practically difficult. If we have built a network of connections on Facebook, we cannot simply transfer it to X (Twitter)—we must start anew. If we have thousands of followers on YouTube, we cannot move them to Rumble or Vimeo—we must acquire them again. As a result, we become dependent on platforms that exploit this dependency to build monopolies. Knowing that with one move they can cut us off from years of accumulated content (a fate that has already befallen many nonconformist individuals), we find ourselves in a position of subservience.

(meme by @npub1yp7wfa7msdpusf4vupzttttu2mx3cns7whx5cgkt4yr9pkpvujus2mzys7 -- found on NOSTR)

With NOSTR applications, the situation is reversed. Because we can choose among them without losing our accumulated content, their producers compete for us. This competition results in spectacular advancements in the protocol's capabilities. In a short time, a blogosphere has emerged on NOSTR (Habla, Blogstack, Highlighter, [Yakihonne]https://yakihonne.com/)), as well as tools for chatting and online meetings (Hivetalk, Nostrnests). Integration with podcasting services allows creators to be compensated without intermediaries (ZapStream, Fountain, Tunestr). As payments on NOSTR are straightforward and users can settle without banks or credit cards, a completely new type of e-commerce is emerging.

(More emerging applications can be found at Nostr Apps).)

Freedom of Speech is Guaranteed

Freedom of speech and resistance to censorship are part of NOSTR's DNA. NOSTR has no overseers monitoring who says what and punishing for abuses. No one can be removed from NOSTR, no one can have their account suspended, nor can posts be deleted. Human rights defenders and whistleblowers are already taking advantage of these features of the protocol. For instance, we find activists from the Human Rights Foundation and Edward Snowden among its users. It is also a tool for opposition activists in authoritarian states.

Proponents of political correctness may argue that such unchecked freedom of publication encourages abuses. Views on the necessity of combating disinformation and hate speech are once again in vogue. Personally, I am closer to the view that freedom of speech does not exist if it does not encompass opinions that we find unacceptable, outrageous, or even repugnant. I believe that the right to freely express any opinion is a lesser evil, and it is worth paying for that right with the discomfort caused by encountering such views. Sometimes, such contact leads to learning something new or changing one's mind. It is time to grow up and stop being offended by others' opinions. The remedy for this is not censorship, but more freedom of speech and active participation in debate.

Cryptography Ensures User Identity

The key to a NOSTR profile is a private key (nsec). We must protect it like any password, or even more so, because this password cannot be recovered. If we lose it, we will lose control over our profile. If someone else takes it, they will assume that control. There is no helpdesk to call in such a case. The responsibility lies with the user.

Each private key is mathematically linked to a public key (npub). This key is entirely public and should be announced publicly. It will allow others to find us online and add us to their list of followers. The public key cannot be forged. If we received it from the right person, we can be sure that the profile belongs to them.

Easy Payments and Earning

The currency of NOSTR is Bitcoin. We can easily link our profile to a wallet in the Lightning network, which is designed for instant Bitcoin payments. Some applications, such as Primal, even have built-in wallets. Thus, by installing the client on our phone, we are immediately ready to make and receive Bitcoin payments. If we use NOSTR in a web browser, we can install a free extension that supports such a wallet (e.g., Alby).

Lightning payments on NOSTR are called "zaps." Zaps have a certain magic about them. The settlement is immediate and final. There are no territorial or temporal restrictions; we can pay literally anyone, regardless of their physical location, seven days a week at any time of day or night. Funds go directly to the payment recipient. Authors of publications can share contributions according to a pre-established ratio, for example, fifty-fifty. Lightning allows for splitting a zap during payment so that the appropriate portions go directly to two or more people.

Micropayments dominate. If a post is popular, it is often rewarded with small contributions. In the case of some popular posts, the rewards are larger, and the total sums of all contributions can be significant. What is attractive is that instead of an empty "like," the author receives real value. Zapping is so popular on NOSTR that zapathons are periodically organised, during which users send each other as many micropayments as possible in a short time. Hundreds of small amounts change hands purely for the fun of experimenting with this technology. However, Satoshis can also be collected and saved. They can be used for online payments, and if we need fiat currency, they can be sold for dollars, euros, or other fiat currencies (keeping tax obligations in mind).

According to currently available data, nearly 3.5 million zaps have been made on the NOSTR network, with a total value of around 20 Bitcoins, which, at today's exchange rate, is approximately 1.2 million USD. Considering that the technology is a few years old and has gained broader popularity only in the last several months, this is an impressive result, but it also shows that this is just the beginning.

In Summary…

NOSTR is not merely a ready-made solution to the problem of centralised social media, including an opportunity to end algorithmic training, the sale of private data, and censorship. It also presents a chance to create entirely new relationships on the internet. Users regain the agency that some may still remember from the early years of the internet—an internet that was genuinely decentralised before platforms emerged and before the clickbait business model based on harvesting users for their valuable data took hold.

As we join the NOSTR network, let us remember that the protocol is in its early stages of development; many available solutions are prototypes, and errors do occur. However, progress can be observed with the naked eye, literally from week to week. A characteristic of open protocols is that anyone can build on them, which greatly fosters innovation. Thus, dozens of competitive and independent projects are emerging, brimming with ideas for solutions the internet has yet to see. To survive, these builders will need to consider how to turn their enthusiasm into a business. Today, many of them are benefiting from the support offered by wealthy enthusiasts of decentralised internet.

Currently, NOSTR has over 1.6 million users who have published around 127 million posts and replies, not counting other reactions such as likes or payments. Compared to Facebook, Instagram, or X (Twitter), these numbers are modest. The future success of NOSTR depends on whether it can offer ordinary users easy-to-use and attractive functionalities. Perhaps it also hinges on whether it can convey its core message to them: the promise of agency, independence, and control over one’s presence on the internet.

Selected Sources:

• Lyn Alden, The Power of Nostr: Decentralised Social Media and More, lynalden.com
• Alex Gladstein, Can Nostr Make Twitter's Dreams Come True?, Reason.com

(originally published in Polish in iMagazine 9/2024)