Narrative is innocent; Crypto thrives on narratives.
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Narrative is innocent; Crypto thrives on narratives.
Rather than suffer in the "desert" of faith, why not cultivate in the "oasis" of narrative?
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsBy Haotian
Why the "Narrative Is Useless" theory is toxic to the industry?
1) Narrative isn't a standalone concept—it emerges only after a concept is widely accepted by the market and gains momentum. When a new idea first appears, there's no "narrative" yet. Only when multiple related startups emerge, market discussions intensify, users begin forming brand perceptions, and capital starts positioning itself, can a true narrative take shape.
A single concept merely represents technical differentiation and cannot form a narrative on its own. Many people oppose not narratives per se, but rather the act of "creating buzzwords" purely for attention and profit.
2) Narratives must follow sound business evolution logic. We need to assess whether the underlying tech stack is solid, whether the frontend and backend product ecosystems are mature, whether the business model is viable, whether real-world applications can be deployed, how fast user adoption is growing, and whether future revenue expectations are realistic. Without coherent or sustainable logic, a true narrative cannot form.
Venture capitalists making big bets and founders going all-in on building are both acting based on such business logic. While meme-based assets—driven by hype and FOMO—can find investment rationale, they represent more of a "game theory of trading" than a genuine "business evolution trend." Strictly speaking, memes are emotionally charged narratives lacking solid business fundamentals.
3) Narratives aggregate market forces—attention, innovation, capital, talent, and resources—into a powerful synergy. This is why entrepreneurs chase narratives: easier fundraising, better publicity, smoother hiring, and more efficient resource integration—essentially achieving more with less.
This also means that while scammers may exploit narratives to extract market liquidity, the inherent business logic of strong narratives demands alignment across VCs, exchanges, tech experts, researchers, KOLs, and end users. The prevalence of scams in the meme space stems precisely from the breakdown of these logical checkpoints in the value chain.
4) Narratives evolve organically—they extend, differentiate, and sometimes die out—following cycles of innovation. Modular narratives have supercharged B2B development, but once too fragmented, they drive demand for "chain abstraction." Zero-knowledge (ZK) was originally just a technical tool, but as the number of homogeneous and heterogeneous chains grows, zkVMs naturally become the next focal point. The restaking narrative recently fueled a surge in TVL farming, yet if AVS (Application-Specific Validation Services) fail to commercialize in time, the entire narrative risks collapse.
In essence, the market does not reject "narratives." What it rejects is when technology fails in practice, applications never materialize, business models remain unproven, investment expectations go undelivered, and narratives become dominated by fraud.
5) Narratives drive industry maturity and progress. The long-term value of narratives that withstand the test of time is immeasurable. Crypto has held onto the overarching narrative of "decentralization" for years, inspiring countless builders and contributors. Narratives can be fabricated, gamed, or manipulated—but those lacking authentic logic are destined to be short-lived.
The continuous emergence, evolution, iteration, and reshuffling of narratives reflect the vibrant, self-sustaining innovation engine of crypto—the best proof that the market is maturing.
Rather than suffer in the faithless "desert," we should cultivate the "oasis" of narrative.
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Haotian | CryptoInsight
