Web3 Launchpads Risk Irrelevance Without Real Products

Web3 Launchpads Risk Irrelevance Without Real Products

Cash-Grabs Over Innovation Leave Builders Struggling

Web3 launchpads were built to connect ambitious builders with early investors. Instead, many have devolved into cash funnels for half-formed ideas—funding token launches that lack substance, infrastructure, or long-term vision.

The numbers are staggering: Virtuals Protocol has already facilitated more than 17,000 AI agent token launches as of February 2025. While this activity signals demand, it also underscores the problem—quantity is replacing quality, with projects too often failing before delivering a usable product.

Industry insiders warn that this dynamic reflects a deeper flaw: launchpads have become arenas where raising funds matters more than building technology.

What Launchpads Were Supposed to Be

When first introduced, launchpads were meant to serve as a meeting point for builders and believers—a place to raise funds, build brand awareness, and connect with global investors eager to back promising technology.

But as the Web3 industry matured, the model stagnated. Launchpads have drifted toward prioritizing token sales over innovation, acting more like decentralized “Shark Tanks” than genuine engines of progress.

Rather than leading Web3 into its next phase, many platforms now strip away technical ambition, funding projects without requiring real products.

The ‘Launch Whatever’ Problem

By branding themselves as chain-agnostic, many launchpads invite anyone to raise capital. But this neutrality has created a lack of focus and standards. The result is a free-for-all: investors face a flood of superficial pitches, and developers chase capital with little meaningful support.

Critics argue that innovation shouldn’t be policed. Yet without clear guardrails for token design or a focus on sophisticated technology, launchpads risk collapsing into hype-driven cycles where everyone loses.

This model may have worked in the industry’s early days—when fast token distribution was the priority. But with greater regulatory scrutiny in 2025, the era of low-effort launches is over.

Builders Need More Than Capital

For most developers, the challenge isn’t just raising money—it’s building products. Juggling three to four disconnected tools to manage backends, servers, costs, and security leaves many promising projects stalled before they gain traction.

Traditional launchpads rarely solve these bottlenecks. As Tim Hafner, founder of OpenServ, argues: “The ethos of launchpads must be giving builders the tools they need to focus on their products—not on patching scaffolding around them as they go.”

In other words, funding alone isn’t enough. Builders need end-to-end support that addresses operational realities.

The Future: Multi-Agent Support and Real Utility

If launchpads want to stay relevant, they must evolve into full-fledged ecosystems—providing the infrastructure to build applications with real utility, adoption, and revenue generation.

In 2025, with AI agents gaining traction, the most effective launchpads will flip the model: build applications first, then build token ecosystems around them. This cycle allows real products to drive adoption, attracting more developers and creating network effects that benefit both builders and users.

Building Better, Not Just Raising More

The path forward is clear: launchpads must move beyond token distribution and commit to building better products. That means:

• Offering end-to-end developer support.

• Establishing incentives and standards to align interests.

• Prioritizing technical innovation over quick fundraising wins.

Without this shift, launchpads risk becoming irrelevant—remembered not as platforms of innovation, but as the places where too many ideas died before they became products.

Opinion by: Tim Hafner, founder and CEO of OpenServ