Frames: The Blueprint for a Farcaster Superapp

5 min readMay 31, 2024

Introduction: What makes an app a Super app?

Most of us have used a super app before and experienced the convenience of booking a ride, ordering delivery, or paying for a meal all in one place — think WeChat, Alipay, Uber or Grab.

Super apps are great because they let you do a bunch of daily activities in one app. These activities can be essentials like payments and loans or occasional things like booking a holiday or shopping. The more features an app has, the closer it gets to being a true ‘super-app’.

Super apps are convenient, efficient, and reliable. They also have the unique value proposition of allowing functionalities to be built around daily activities.

This is what Frames is set to become with its decentralised platform that is built for users to create more innovation over time, transforming Warpcast into a super-app by adding diverse functionalities.

Warpcast, built on the decentralised social network Farcaster, is like Twitter — a daily activity for many. With Frames, countless use cases emerge: games, buying cookies, minting NFTs, finding unclaimed airdrops, and much more.

In this article, we’ll examine the reasons why Frames could make Farcaster the next big web3 super app.

So What is Farcaster and Frames?

Farcaster is a decentralised social media protocol built with a focus on interoperability, user autonomy, and privacy. It was founded by Coinbase alums Dan Romero and Varun Srinivasan in 2020 and built on Optimism.

Farcaster allows users to create, own, and transfer their own identities and content without relying on any centralised platform or service. Its goal is to create an open, free, diverse, and interoperable Web3 social ecosystem. This is opposed to, for example, the lack of interconnectivity between accounts on Twitter.

Farcaster’s most popular app is Warpcast, which provides a Twitter-like platform for writing posts (called “casts”), following other users, and liking or sharing their posts (“recasting”). On-chain data shows that Warpcast accounts for almost half of all sign-ups across the entire protocol, despite a multitude of apps live on Farcaster.

From the development side, Farcaster recently launched a new feature called Frames, which can turn any cast (you can understand it as Farcaster’s tweet or post) into an interactive application; this new feature brings more to the Farcaster ecosystem possibilities including an airdrop checker built into the cast and one-click gas-free NFT minting.

In other words, Frames can easily attract encryption developers and pave the way for more interesting encryption business formats.

Why is Frames bringing so much Hype to Farcaster?

Frames: Build It Once, Watch It Last

Once a creator makes a Frame, it stays available for everyone on the platform, as long as it can handle the traffic.

From a supply perspective, it becomes possible for Frame creators to constantly innovate on new ideas. It is similar to creating games on the app store, where a developer could create one and then go on to create others.

Frames — Functional and Fun

The social aspect of crypto makes it exciting and fun, encouraging you to share it with friends and spark their interest. This layer drives true network effects and helps build useful and in-demand features.

Since Frames launched, Farcaster has provided the perfect social context for these apps. This is because Frames brings apps to Warpcast — all kinds of apps. Developers can build NFT galleries, collections for sale, games, and anything else that could be built. There is no need for the users to leave the app. To adopt this app, users don’t need to change their behaviour.

There is even a playable version of the 1993 first-shooter hit, “Doom” in a Frame:

Strong Community Through Culture

Since Frames launched, Farcaster’s DAU (Daily Average Users) has spiked, and developers have rushed to build the sort of native crypto functionality — claim or mint NFTs, play games — that until now happened in separate, silo-ed experiences.

Channels are created based on interests. It becomes very easy for like-minded folks to find each other and bond. Some channels require users to pay using ‘warps’ (Warpcast’s in-app currency for performing on-chain actions) to be able to post and interact within it.

This reduces the occurrence of bots / random spammers, creating a ‘safe and fun space’ for community members. It can almost be thought of as like Telegram, where users are constantly on to chat with others and keep updated with what’s happening (news channel) etc.

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Conclusion

In short, the idea of a crypto super app might be realised in the ever-growing flexibility of platforms like Farcaster through Frames.

Users can enjoy a more customised and versatile experience with tons of specialised, interoperable tools. This decentralised approach could unlock all the potential the crypto world has to offer and bring in more mainstream adoption.

About SubQuery

SubQuery Network is innovating web3 infrastructure with tools that empower builders to decentralise the future. Our fast, flexible, and open data indexer supercharges dApps on over 190 networks, enabling a user-focused web3 world. Soon, our Data Node will provide breakthroughs in the RPC industry, and deliver decentralisation without compromise. We pioneer the web3 revolution for visionaries and forward-thinkers. We’re not just a company — we’re a movement driving an inclusive and decentralised web3 era. Let’s shape the future of web3, together.