Telegram founder Pavel Durov said the messaging platform will take a much more direct role in The Open Network, or TON, positioning Telegram to become the blockchain’s largest validator and the main force behind its next phase of development. In a post on X, Durov tied that shift to lower transaction costs and a fresh product roadmap that includes a new TON website, updated developer tooling, and network performance upgrades expected within two to three weeks. The move marks a notable change in how TON is being presented to the market, with Telegram stepping forward more explicitly as the ecosystem’s lead operator just as the network pushes to improve usability and throughput.
Telegram Moves to Lead TON as Top Validator
Durov framed the change in direct terms. “Fees in TON have dropped 6× — to nearly zero. Next step — Telegram replaces the TON Foundation as the driving force behind TON and becomes its largest validator,” he wrote on X. “The focus shifts to tech superiority. New ton.org, new dev tools, new performance upgrades. Timeline: 2-3 weeks.”
That statement is significant because TON has long been associated with Telegram at the product and community level, even as the TON Foundation has served as a key public-facing body for the network. Durov’s post indicates Telegram now intends to assume a more central operational role, rather than acting mainly as the ecosystem’s distribution layer through its messaging app and Mini Apps environment.
The validator point matters beyond branding. Validators help secure proof-of-stake networks and process transactions, so becoming the largest validator would give Telegram a more direct role in TON’s infrastructure. Durov did not publish technical details in the post about the scale of staking, validator share, or governance implications, but the message clearly positions Telegram as the network’s primary institutional participant in its next stage.
The announcement follows an earlier message from Durov from April 23, when he previewed a sharp reduction in network costs. “In one week, TON fees will drop 6× — to just 0.00039 TON (~$0.0005) per transaction, fixed regardless of network load,” he wrote at the time. “Soon after most transactions go fully feeless. Zero commission. MTONGA!” That earlier post established the fee cut as part of a broader effort to make TON cheaper and easier to use at scale.
Fee compression has become a key competitive metric for consumer-facing blockchains, especially those targeting payments, social applications, and in-app activity. In TON’s case, the lower-cost message aligns with Telegram’s broader push to make blockchain functionality feel native inside its app ecosystem rather than a separate, higher-friction experience.
Still, Durov’s latest comments focused less on token economics and more on execution. By saying the focus “shifts to tech superiority,” he is signaling that Telegram wants TON to compete on product performance and developer experience, not only on distribution through Telegram’s user base. That is a meaningful repositioning for a chain often discussed primarily in the context of Telegram integration.
AI Transparency Note: This article was prepared with the assistance of an AI system based on the sources listed and was reviewed, edited, and approved by a human editor before publication. All quotes, data points, and factual claims are intended to be grounded in the cited source material; however, errors cannot be ruled out entirely.
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