The best line of thinking for me about where #nostr is going to grow is that it enables a 100% privately-controlled infrastructure that can be built that does not rely on or impinge on someone else’s infrastructure. For me, that’s the big innovation - I can build my own clients, relays and services, be completely independent, yet still be open, if I choose.

So what’s the core innovation of #nostr? You can have it both ways - you can be completely private, yet be open. It reminds me of the core innovation of marketable securities, centuries back - you could have it both ways - you could invest your money, yet still retain reasonable liquidity, by having a marketable security of that investment that you could liquidate quite easily should you need the ‘savings’ for something else. It was this ‘having it both ways’ that allowed the economy to explode in growth because it encouraged savings and investment at the same time.

Similar logic applies to #nostr - finally, we can have it both ways - I can build my own GFY infrastructure to serve my private purposes that nobody can take down, but it works with everybody else’s GFY infrastructure by default. That doesn’t mean the infrastructures need to work together, but it’s no longer due to a technical reason.

It took me a while to realize - the signed events and relay architecture is sheer genius. Couple that genius with bitcoin (lightning, zaps, etc.) you have the ingredients for a self-sustaining independent infrastructure that by default fits into a greater whole.

While social media is an interesting use case for #nostr, I believe what I described above is far more compelling.