What are the main problems with TON?

Usually, in our #opinion column, we share our own thoughts. This time, however, we are summarizing a widely discussed essay by Denis Vasin of Storm Trade about the challenges that TON-based projects encounter. According to Denis, while the TON Foundation is creating useful resources like developer libraries, these efforts don't address the fundamental pain points for builders on the TON platform. So, what are these issues?

The most significant problem with the tooling is not a shortage of libraries but recurring issues like TON Connect frequently failing. When users are unable to confirm transactions, it's a failure on TON Connect’s end, yet it’s the TON projects that suffer by losing their audience.

The blockchain was designed to be asynchronous to support scaling to a larger audience, but this has made development significantly more complex. Denis notes that other modern blockchains like SUI and Aptos also use asynchronicity but manage to shield developers from the inherent complexities. Consequently, developing for TON is more difficult, time-consuming, and costly.

The user experience (UX) leaves much to be desired. For instance, the TON Space feature within @wallet creates a "wallet inside a wallet" scenario that is confusing for users coming from web2.

While the Telegram audience is often seen as an advantage, in practice, it can become "toxic baggage." It attracts users who are unwilling to transition from the off-chain to the on-chain world and invest money but are quick to offer harsh criticism. This results in an audience that projects would rather avoid than attract.

Grants are often viewed as "free support" for projects. However, considering that projects invest their own resources to bring users to the blockchain, it would be more accurate to see these grants as mutually beneficial investments.

Despite these challenges, Denis does not believe the situation is "hopeless." He thinks all these problems are solvable within a year, but the first step is to acknowledge their existence. What are your thoughts on this?

@thedailyton