Yesterday, a prominent figure in the Chinese crypto community asked me: Is MegaETH a Layer 1 or Layer 2 protocol? To be honest, it's been a long time since anyone asked me this question. By 2025, the competition between chains is no longer about technical parameters: whether it's Layer 1 or Layer 2, which virtual machine to use, or which data availability solution to adopt. These questions become insignificant in the face of "can you launch a blockbuster application." (Even Solana founder Anatoly said on Twitter that they are competing with Mega.) The decisive factor in launching blockbuster applications and continuously producing them is people. Those who truly drive the ecosystem usually have a few characteristics: - Determination to weather the bull and bear markets - Courage to lower their stance and accept market information - Ability to constantly pivot - Foolish confidence to create projects that break out of the circle For this reason, we created a special project called Mega Mafia. You could call it an accelerator, but I think it's more like a small universe: A group of ambitious and talented people gather here to collide, challenge each other, and also encourage each other. There are no standard answers here, and every prototype can be accommodated. Over the past year, we worked together in Berlin and Chiang Mai, brainstorming and coding late into the night. We incubated 15 Omega projects from scratch, with total funding exceeding $50 million (more than Mega itself). Follow @0xmegamafia to learn about the Mafia's projects and members. Of course, the Mafia hasn't had a smooth ride this past year. Being strongly tied to an ecosystem is like being in a relationship or marriage; there will always be itchy moments, and some will part ways. But there's one thing we always insist on: building together, winning together. This year, we chose three cities as new destinations—after spending a lot of time investigating: Copenhagen: Experience the beauty of the Nordic summer Tokyo: Silly and two-dimensional with Mega New York: The crypto world capital Although the locations have changed, our original intention remains the same: to find a group of like-minded partners (aka those who blindly believe that the crypto world will eventually rule the world) and create interesting and useful blockbuster products on the chain. omega