Key Takeaways:
- Solana CEO Anatoly Yakovenko expressed regret over the controversial “America Is Back” ad, admitting he initially downplayed its impact.
- The ad, which critics called offensive, was deleted after 1.2 million views, with Yakovenko pledging to keep Solana focused on technology.
- The controversy sparked debate about inclusion in open-source development, with some arguing Solana’s response was driven by business concerns.
Solana Labs CEO Anatoly Yakovenko has addressed backlash over the controversial “America Is Back — Time to Accelerate” advertisement, expressing deep regret for his initial response.
The ad, meant to promote the Solana Accelerate conference, featured a satirical scene where a character dismisses gender identity discussions in favor of technological innovation.
The ad was bad, and it’s still gnawing at my soul. I am ashamed I downplayed it instead of just calling it what it is – mean and punching down on a marginalized group. I am grateful for the ecosystem devs and artists that immediately called it what it is both publicly and…
— toly 🇺🇸 (@aeyakovenko) March 19, 2025
Critics accused it of being offensive and undermining marginalized communities.
Yakovenko admitted he initially downplayed the issue but now recognizes the ad as “mean and punching down.”
He praised community members who spoke out and vowed to keep Solana focused on open-source development and decentralization, steering clear of cultural and political debates.
Before its deletion, the ad garnered around 1.2 million views and sparked heated discussions.
Took them 9 hours to delete it.
— Adam Cochran (adamscochran.eth) (@adamscochran) March 18, 2025
Also all the major players in the Solana ecosystem suddenly delete their tweets promoting/supporting the ad and RT’d and liked takes about it being bad.
They approved this, supported it and celebrated it.
They rolled it back because it hurt… pic.twitter.com/kPMERDpTcn
Venture capitalist Adam Cochran criticized Solana’s leadership, suggesting they only backtracked due to business concerns.
He also highlighted the significant role of transgender individuals in open-source development, citing a GitHub survey showing 1% of open-source developers identify as transgender.
Solana has not released an official statement but reshared Yakovenko’s apology to its 3.3 million followers.
While the CEO hopes to move past the controversy, the debate over the ad’s implications continues within the crypto community.
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