In the interview, TON Foundation representative, Omur Cataltepe, told us that the organization forms part of a community supporting the TON blockchain. This blockchain was initially designed by Telegram and is recognized for its ultra-fast performance and high capacity, which can accommodate billions of users. The core mission of the Foundation is to nurture the ecosystem by incubating new projects and providing both technical support and tools. This is part of their overarching objective to cultivate a robust ecosystem on a global scale, utilizing the TON blockchain.

He went on to say that, to aid in the execution of these initiatives, the Foundation runs several funding programs. One of these is the TON grants program, which is divided into three tiers depending on the nature and scope of the projects. Rewards for these grants range from $5,000 to $50,000. Additionally, the TON COIN Fund offers financial investments for project development, with a total investment size of $250 million.

The Foundation is open to supporting a wide variety of projects, including those aimed at public benefit and commercial ventures. In the third tier of the grants program, there’s no requirement for projects to be open source or solely for public benefit, allowing commercial projects to also participate.

A significant aspect of the Foundation’s work involves leveraging Telegram’s new web app technology. This technology enables user interfaces to be designed within bots, opening up new opportunities for the creation of web2 and web3 projects within Telegram. A notable example of this is the “@wallets” bot, which has been designed to simplify cryptocurrency investment for retail users, thereby bypassing the need for a centralized exchange.

Looking to the future, the Foundation has plans to encourage mass adoption of these technologies and enable a web3 ecosystem that places a strong emphasis on privacy. They cite TON storage, a peer-to-peer file storage platform built on TON, as a testament to their commitment to user privacy.

TON Foundation is a dynamic and forward-thinking organisation that supports an ecosystem built around the TON blockchain. They are committed to fostering an inclusive space for both public benefit and commercial projects, and they are leveraging cutting-edge technology to create user-friendly interfaces within Telegram. With their focus on privacy, mass adoption, and simplifying cryptocurrency investment, they are poised to make significant contributions to the web3 ecosystem.