View source for BitClout

{{Short description|Blockchain-based social media app}}
{{Distinguish|Bitcloud}}
{{Redirect|DeSo|3=Deso (disambiguation)}}
{{Confusing|date=January 2022}}{{Infobox cryptocurrency
| image_1 = BitClout logo.svg
| white_paper = ([https://web.archive.org/web/20210324220549/https://bitclout.com/one_pager.pdf archive])
| initial_release_date = {{start date and age|2021|3}}
| code_repository = https://github.com/bitclout/core
| author = 
| source_model = Open source
| license = [[MIT license]]<ref>{{cite web|url = https://github.com/bitclout/core/blob/main/LICENSE|title = Core/License at main · deso-protocol/core |website=GitHub}}</ref>
| website = {{URL|https://bitclout.com/}}
| block_explorer = https://explorer.deso.com/
| ledger_start = {{start date and age|2021|1|18|df=y}}
| timestamping = [[Proof of work]]
| supply_limit = 
| exchange_rate = 
}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}}'''BitClout''' was an [[open source]] [[blockchain]]-based [[social media platform]]. On the platform, users could post short-form writings and photos, award money to posts they particularly like by clicking a diamond icon,<ref name=":2">{{Cite magazine |last=Lester |first=Caroline |date=9 June 2021 |title=The Dark, Democratizing Power of the Social-Media Stock Market |url=https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-dark-democratizing-power-of-the-social-media-stock-market |magazine=The New Yorker |language=en-US |access-date=12 June 2021}}</ref> as well as buy and sell "creator coins" (personalized tokens whose value depends on people's reputations).<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Matney|first=Lucas|date=23 March 2021|title=Crypto social network BitClout arrives with a bevy of high-profile investors — and skeptics – TechCrunch|url=https://techcrunch.com/2021/03/22/crypto-social-network-bitclout-arrives-with-a-bevy-of-high-profile-investors-and-skeptics/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210323062631/https://techcrunch.com/2021/03/22/crypto-social-network-bitclout-arrives-with-a-bevy-of-high-profile-investors-and-skeptics/|archive-date=23 March 2021|access-date=12 June 2021|publisher=TechCrunch}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Girling|first=William|date=14 April 2021|title=BitClout creates the first 'social media stock market' {{!}} Financial Services (FinServ)|url=https://fintechmagazine.com/financial-services-finserv/bitclout-creates-first-social-media-stock-market|access-date=12 June 2021|website=FinTech Magazine|language=en}}</ref> BitClout ran on a custom [[proof of work]] blockchain, and was a prototype of what can be built on '''DeSo''' (short for "'''<u>De</u>centralized <u>So</u>cial'''"). BitClout's founder and primary leader is Nader al-Naji, known pseudonymously as "Diamondhands".<ref name=":2" /> In July 2024, al-Naji was arrested by the [[U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission]] and charged with fraud involving BitClout.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-07-30 |title=SEC Charges Nader Al-Naji with Fraud and Unregistered Offering of Crypto Asset Securities |url=https://www.sec.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2024-91 |access-date=2024-08-07 |website=[[U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Roberts |first=Jeff John |date=2024-07-30 |title=Feds arrest Princeton grad 'Diamondhands' who raised $257 million for fake crypto social media site |url=https://fortune.com/crypto/2024/07/30/feds-arrest-princeton-grad-diamondhands-who-raised-257-million-for-fake-crypto-social-media-site/ |access-date=2024-08-07 |website=[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Neill |first=Bridget |date=2024-08-05 |title=Nader Al-Naji ’14 charged with fraud over crypto startup, BitClout |url=https://www.dailyprincetonian.com/article/2024/08/bitclout-founder-nadar-al-naji-14-charged-with-fraud-and-unregistered-crypto-offerings |access-date=2024-08-07 |website=[[The Daily Princetonian]] |language=}}</ref>

Under development since 2019, BitClout's blockchain created its first block in January 2021, and BitClout itself launched publicly in March 2021. The platform launched with 15,000 "reserved" accounts - a move intended to prevent impersonation, but which backfired as some people with reserved accounts tried to actively distance themselves. Later, in September 2021, BitClout was revealed to be the flagship product of the DeSo blockchain.

== History ==

=== Origins (2019 - March 2021) ===
In early 2019, Nader al-Naji became interested in "mixing investing and social media". He started creating a custom blockchain in May 2019, but didn't tell anyone else until November 2020.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last= |date=28 September 2021 |title=Why BitClout's Diamondhands is HODLing to the Moon |url=https://medium.com/sequoia-capital/why-bitclouts-diamondhands-is-hodling-to-the-moon-327a43b5f271 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210828175720/https://medium.com/sequoia-capital/why-bitclouts-diamondhands-is-hodling-to-the-moon-327a43b5f271 |archive-date=28 August 2021 |access-date=4 December 2021 |website=Sequoia Capital Publication |language=en}}</ref> However, in the fall of 2020, al-Naji pitched BitClout's own investors under his real name and began posting job listings for a "new operation".<ref name=":25" />

Although BitClout was not originally intended to launch until mid-2021, its development was sped up due to "zeitgeist about decentralized social media" in January 2021.<ref name=":4" />{{Unreliable source?|date=December 2021}}

BitClout's first block was mined on 18 January 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bitclout blockchain explorer {{!}} Cloutangel|url=https://explorer.cloutangel.com/block/0|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211204232724/https://explorer.cloutangel.com/block/0|archive-date=4 December 2021|access-date=2021-12-04|website=explorer.cloutangel.com}}</ref> Its next block was mined on 1 March 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bitclout blockchain explorer {{!}} Cloutangel|url=https://explorer.cloutangel.com/block/1|access-date=2021-12-04|website=explorer.cloutangel.com|archive-date=4 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211204234840/https://explorer.cloutangel.com/block/1|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== As BitClout (March - September 2021) <span class="anchor" id="Controversies"></span> ===
In early March 2021, about fifty investors received links to a password-protected website with the BitClout white paper.<ref name=":2" /> They were encouraged to explore the site and send the same link to "two or three other 'trusted contacts'".<ref name=":2" /> Within weeks users were spending millions of dollars per day on the platform.<ref name=":2" /> The platform's founders said they were "completely unprepared", having planned to have a "soft-launch".<ref name=":2" /> The leader went by the name "diamondhands" on the platform.<ref name=":0" />

On 24 March 2021, BitClout launched out of [[private beta]].<ref name=":1" /> Investors include [[Sequoia Capital]], [[Andreessen Horowitz]], the venture capital firm [[Social Capital (venture capital)|Social Capital]], [[Coinbase#History|Coinbase Ventures]], [[Winklevoss Capital Management]], [[Alexis Ohanian]], [[Polychain Capital|Polychain]], [[Pantera Capital|Pantera]], and Digital Currency Group ([[CoinDesk]]'s parent company).<ref name=":1" /> During its initial launch, BitClout's currency could be bought with bitcoin, but not sold except on Discord servers or Twitter threads.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Seward |first=Zack |date=24 March 2021 |title=The fuss about BitClout |url=https://www.axios.com/bitclout-bitcoin-blockchain-twitter-c83672b9-921f-429c-9922-f1129db0b0ca.html |access-date=2021-06-30 |website=Axios |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":19">{{Cite web |last=Kay |first=Grace |date=17 April 2021 |title=How to use BitClout to bet on the popularity of influencers like Elon Musk on the world's first crypto social network |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-bitclout-how-to-buy-creator-coins-2021-4 |access-date=28 April 2021 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}</ref> A single [[bitcoin wallet]] related to BitClout{{Which|date=July 2021}} received{{How|date=December 2021|title=Is this related to how BitClout was initially funded by VCs?}} more than $165M{{Quantify|date=July 2021}} worth of deposits.<ref name=":1" />

In March 2021, law firm Anderson Kill P.C. sent Nader al-Naji, the presumed leader of the BitClout platform, a [[cease-and-desist letter]], demanding the removal of Brandon Curtis's account and alleging that BitClout violated sections 1798 and 3344 of the [[California Civil Code]] by using Curtis's name and likeness without his consent.<ref name=":25" /><ref name=":28">{{Cite web |last=Sriram |first=Samyuktha |date=26 March 2021 |title=Controversial Crypto Project BitClout Faces Legal Charges Over Selling Social Tokens Without Users Consent |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/controversial-crypto-project-bitclout-faces-233043748.html |access-date=2021-07-23 |website=finance.yahoo.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":26" /> Curtis also tweeted, "Adopting Bitcoin's aesthetic to raise VC funding to carry out unethical and blatantly illegal schemes like BitClout: not cool".<ref name=":28" /> (However, Curtis's coin, despite not being listed on the official website, can still be bought by users searching for the original username.<ref name=":26" />) Additionally, in April 2021, [[Lee Hsien Loong]] asked for his name and photograph to be removed from the site, stating that he has "nothing to do with the platform" and that "it is misleading and done without [his] permission".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ang |first=Jolene |date=2021-04-02 |title=PM Lee asks for his name, photo to be removed from BitClout crypto platform that monetises Twitter profiles |url=https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/pm-lee-hsien-loong-asks-for-his-name-photo-to-be-removed-from-bitclout-cryptocurrency |access-date=2021-06-12 |website=The Straits Times |language=en}}</ref>

On 18 May 2021, diamondhands announced that 100% of the BitClout code went public.<ref>{{Cite web |last=diamondhands |date=18 May 2021 |title=diamondhands on DeSo.Social|url=https://deso.social/posts/46684756d5059f842646ff70d2bf5f6a788a0c2f3446ab0c2a19138358612a49 |access-date=18 June 2021 |website=DeSo.Social}}</ref>

On 12 June 2021, the supply of BitClout was capped at around 11 million coins.<ref name=":2" />

On 18 July 2021, BitClout added the ability for users to mint and purchase [[Non-fungible token|NFTs]] within the platform.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Welcome to BitClout|url=https://bitclout.com/|access-date=2021-08-19|website=BitClout|language=en}}</ref>{{Verify source|date=April 2022}}{{better source needed|date=April 2022}}

=== As part of DeSo (September 2021 - present){{Anchor|As DeSo (September 2021 - present)}} ===

On 21 September 2021, it was revealed that BitClout was a prototype built on '''DeSo''', short for "Decentralized Social".<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|last=diamondhands|date=21 September 2021|title=diamondhands on BitClout|url=https://bitclout.com/posts/89d2d0d02e1b41254992e1c09d9dd4973ce6b8d33fa33edfbb08d67acc4afc53|access-date=5 October 2021|website=bitclout.com|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite web|date=2021|title=Deso {{!}} The Decentralized Social Blockchain|url=https://www.deso.org/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210923115654/https://www.deso.org/|archive-date=23 September 2021|access-date=5 October 2021|website=www.deso.org}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=October 2021}} As a part of this revelation, diamondhands confirmed his identity as Nader al-Naji.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web|last=LaPorte|first=Nicole|date=2021-09-21|title=BitClout founder 'Diamondhands' reveals himself and explains why social media as we know it is dead|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90678085/nader-al-naji-creator-bitcloutfuture-social-media-cryptocurrency|access-date=2021-10-05|website=Fast Company|language=en-US}}</ref> (As early as April 2021, it had been believed that diamondhands indeed was that person.<ref name=":25" />)The Bitclout project raised $200M in funding, which went to setting up the DeSo Foundation.<ref name=":5" />

== Design <span class="anchor" id="Overview"></span> ==
BitClout is a social media platform. Its users can post short-form writings and photos (similarly to [[Twitter]]).<ref name=":2" /> They can award money to posts they particularly like by clicking a diamond icon (similarly to [[Twitch (service)|Twitch Bits]]).<ref name=":2" />

{{Multiple image
| direction = vertical
| image1 = Creator Coin Price vs. Creator Coins in Circulation.png
| image2 = Creator Coins and Price Chart.png
| caption2 = Top: graph of the BitClout creator coin price curve. Bottom: a tabulated version of the same.
| total_width = 250
}}

The prices of each account's "creator coin" goes up and down with the popularity of the celebrity behind it. For example, if someone says something negative, the value of their corresponding account may go down.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Wieczner|first=Jen|date=12 April 2021|title=The Mysterious Influencer Stock Market Worth $1 Billion|url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/04/the-mysterious-influencer-stock-market-worth-usd1-billion.html|access-date=28 April 2021|website=Intelligencer|language=en-us}}</ref> This price is computed automatically according to the formula <math>price\_in\_bitclout=.003*creator\_coins\_in\_circulation^2</math>.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web|title=What is BitClout? - The BitClout Guide|url=https://docs.bitclout.com|access-date=23 July 2021}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=July 2021}}

At launch time, BitClout [[Web scraping|scraped]] 15,000 profiles of celebrities from [[Twitter]] to create "reserved" accounts in their names.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":25">{{Cite web|last=Wieczner|first=Jen|date=2021-04-12|title=The Mysterious Influencer Stock Market Worth $1 Billion|url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/04/the-mysterious-influencer-stock-market-worth-usd1-billion.html|access-date=2021-04-22|website=Intelligencer|language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Mittal |first=Apoorva |date=15 April 2021 |title=BitClout aims to be the 'influencer stock market' |work=The Economic Times |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/technology/bitclout-aims-to-be-the-influencer-stock-market/articleshow/82065428.cms |access-date=2021-04-22}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=MacColl |first=Margaux |date=15 April 2021 |title=Top VCs are loving a new crypto market called BitClout which lets them collect, and make money on, influencers like Elon Musk and Brian Armstrong |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/bitclout-lets-you-bet-on-reputations-heres-who-vcs-are-betting-on-2021-4 |access-date=2021-04-22 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}</ref> To claim a reserved account, the account holder would need to tweet about it (which also serves as a marketing strategy).<ref name=":25" /> At least 80{{Quantify|date=July 2021}} such reserved profiles have been claimed.<ref name=":26">{{Cite news|last=Hitt|first=Tarpley|date=2021-04-12|title=The Shady Crypto Startup Selling 'Shares' in Celebs|language=en|work=The Daily Beast|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/bitclout-is-the-shady-crypto-start-up-selling-shares-in-celebs|access-date=2021-07-23}}</ref>

[[Proof of stake]] was introduced in March 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |last=al-Naji |first=Nader |date=2024-07-10 |title=Post by Nader al-Naji |url=https://deso.social/posts/fadd979286cb52d05319e68fe03e44599891f6b9a2395db31e66de3a19bd68ca |access-date=2024-08-07 |website=deso.social |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=DeSo founder Nader Blog |url=https://deso.social/u/nader/blog/during-the-bear-market-the-deso-team-shipped |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240105140825/https://deso.social/u/nader/blog/during-the-bear-market-the-deso-team-shipped |archive-date=5 January 2024|access-date=5 January 2024 |website=deso.social/u/nader?tab=blog}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://bitclout.com BitClout official website]

[[Category:2021 software]]
[[Category:Cryptocurrency projects]]
[[Category:Social media]]
[[Category:Social media management platforms]]
[[Category:Internet properties established in 2021]]
[[Category:Free and open-source software]]
[[Category:Software using the MIT license]]