Dialogue on Another Dimension: Helping BNB CHAIN Return to Its Peak

Author: AB Kuai Dong

On July 25, the popular writer Ling Wei officially announced on Twitter that she would be leaving OKX. Subsequently, on August 15, Ling Wei announced that she had officially joined BNB CHAIN as the head of ecological development.

In the past two weeks, discussions surrounding Ling Wei have been incessant in the community. Some say her self-proclaimed title is too long and somewhat hypocritical; others claim she is an abnormal person who always tries to package herself rather than actually doing the work. The crypto community even saw imitators of Ling Wei, who preemptively wrote a resignation note for her from BNB CHAIN as a form of mockery.

So, what is the real Ling Wei like? Are the doubts and controversies in the community valid? With these questions in mind, seasoned crypto practitioner AB Kuai Dong engaged in a dialogue with Ling Wei for over an hour in Binance Square.

Below is the entire dialogue, with some edits and optimizations.

1. Why does the entire community describe you as "Mother of Dragons"?

Ling Wei: This title is not self-proclaimed. When I first wrote those two essays, I didn't realize so many people would see them, and then various titles were assigned to me, jokingly calling me "Mother of Dragons."

Before coming to BNB CHAIN, I had many professional experiences and stages. For example, I loved writing, traveling, and basketball as a child. I am a member of the Chinese Writers Association and have published five books. I went to Lu Xun Academy at the age of seven and participated in the New Concept Writing Contest in high school. Due to social media, I became a travel blogger, and in 2019, I was listed in Forbes U30 as a travel experience expert. During my studies, I ran a blogger studio, and from 2010 to 2016, I worked part-time at Tencent NBA while studying.

After graduating from university, I worked full-time in traditional finance due to my dual degrees in accounting and psychology, such as auditing at PwC and as the Head of Marketing for an Equity Research firm in Asia Pacific, before entering the crypto industry. Initially, I was in VC, then I went to OKX, where I worked as Partnership Lead for a Web3 wallet.

Since I haven't achieved any significant milestones in life so far, I can only stack up titles for now. I saw people commenting that my title is long, hence the nickname "Mother of Dragons." In fact, "Mother of Dragons" is a very popular character, and I like her, hoping I haven't offended her.

2. Why did you choose the crypto industry? After all, you had already reached unprecedented heights in writing, with your works and updates frequently seen on platforms like Xiaohongshu, Weibo, and offline libraries. What made you come to the crypto industry?

Ling Wei: This choice wasn't difficult. Before entering the crypto industry, while still in traditional finance, I felt that the ceiling for writing and social media was too low, and I had almost given up. Moreover, traditional finance is not an industry that accommodates individual personalities; the industry is too mature, and no matter how hard you work, you are just a cog in the machine.

However, when you get in touch with crypto, try wallet transfers and DEX, you will find the financial efficiency is very shocking, making you instantly feel that this is the future.

3. When I saw your official announcement joining BNB CHAIN, it was quite grand, and many industry peers were discussing it. After officially starting, have your colleagues or former employer OKX reached out to you?

Ling Wei: The relationships are very peaceful, with no conflicts at all. They are all close friends, and many things were discussed with friends at OKX before they were made public. On the contrary, after I joined BNB CHAIN, many friends from OKX also established connections with me at BNB CHAIN to facilitate communication and coordination. I am also involved in the cooperation and coordination between BNB Chain and OKX in the group.

The circle is small; no matter where people move, as long as they are still in the same industry, everyone is in a collaborative state.

4. I see you often online during U.S. hours, including responding to community questions on Twitter. Are you still living in that villa in Seattle?

Ling Wei: First of all, that's not a villa; it's a house, and it's very ordinary. Anyone who graduates from an American university and finds a job can afford it. When I was a travel blogger, I made a Vlog about a typical day working from home, which featured that house and became a small hit. It's easy to find online.

Currently, I don't live there full-time; I recently bought a farm.

5. Many netizens are curious, Teacher Ling Wei, are all your videos and written works created by yourself?

Ling Wei: Yes, for a professional blogger, video editing and writing are essential skills. After entering the crypto industry, since the focus is not on social media, all the content I publish is done casually and doesn't take much time; it's all done by myself.

But when I was a professional blogger, running brand promotions and travel promotions required efficient output in a very short time, which one person couldn't manage, so I recruited and built a studio.

6. After joining BNB CHAIN, will you still shoot videos of your daily life at BNB CHAIN like before?

Ling Wei: It depends on whether people are interested in watching. If the community wants to see it, I am happy to prioritize making some videos. I have a strong desire to record and share, mainly because my current work is very busy, and social media and content creation have taken a back seat. However, since I came to BNB Chain, which focuses on serving the community and developers, if people want to see it, the technology and tools are there, and I can pick it up anytime.

7. The Web3 industry, especially the community, may not be very friendly to women. Recently, there have been many tweets surrounding women's issues, with some even making extreme remarks directed at specific individuals. Teacher Ling Wei, what do you think about these online comments about women?

Ling Wei: I hope any community can provide a more relaxed and kind public opinion environment for both men and women. However, this situation is not unique to Web3; there are unfriendly comments about both genders everywhere. I believe society is gradually moving in a better direction, and at least people can now distinguish what is unfair and have a consciousness of pursuing equality.

As for me personally, I don't spend too much time focusing on these comments. I believe that both women and men have their own advantages and pressures, and it's more meaningful to focus on the issues themselves. Life is short, and I prefer to spend my time on things that I find more valuable.

8. After joining BNB CHAIN, do you have any immediate plans that you can share?

Ling Wei: There are many plans currently. First, I want to strengthen connections with developers and the community, listening to everyone's voices. I also hope to better serve developers, such as continuing to build Builder DAO (the developer organization of BNB CHAIN).

Secondly, as an employee of a large company, I need to allocate internal priorities well, especially when I just arrived. I am more focused on things that can be implemented sooner, such as AMA, which is a typical initiative. I want to make it a long-term channel for dialogue with project parties and the community, available in both Chinese and English, and then build a real BNB ecosystem based on feedback from participants.

9. Looking back at the BNB CHAIN boom in 2021, there were MVB, growth funds, and incubation support, giving rise to phenomenal applications like Alpaca, MOBOX, PancakeSwap, and BakerySwap. But now BNB CHAIN feels much quieter. Will there be more support for projects this year?

Ling Wei: BNB CHAIN has matured in its experience and system of resource support. A project goes from having an idea to fundraising, building, launching, and later development; we have a systematic resource setup for that. For example, early-stage projects can participate in hackathons, BIA, MVB, and apply for grants. During the Build phase, we also provide support like infrastructure and cloud services. We have a Kickstart Program to help connect with partners, negotiate discounts, or even free opportunities. The later support for TVL, DAU, and LP is also a long-term endeavor.

A new round of MVB is about to begin, and we will consider selecting more projects this time. If you are in the fundraising stage, we will not only push you to Labs but also help connect you with more VCs around the world. Here, I also call on VC friends to connect with us and co-build BNB CHAIN together.

10. As the head of ecological development at BNB CHAIN, do you think public chains should develop MEME, infrastructure, or other specific tracks?

Ling Wei: A public chain is like a city; doing anything in any track within it won't conflict. BNB CHAIN currently provides a cheaper, faster, and safer environment for everyone. But if you want MEME to perform better on BNB CHAIN, then the infrastructure must be developed first.

11. TON is very popular now, and there are parallel EVM and modular projects like Monad, Reddio, and Berachain in the primary market. Recently, Sun Yuchen's TRON has also made many moves. BNB CHAIN, facing so many competitors, no longer holds the advantage it did in 2021. What do you think?

Ling Wei: BNB CHAIN has gone through many stages, and many projects that have not yet issued tokens have their own ways to attract communities. Currently, we are more focused on solving problems, such as ensuring that users feel that BNB CHAIN is a fast and stable network, and providing storage infrastructure (Greenfield). The reason why there are so many hot topics this round is that we always seem to miss the trend. We are constantly thinking about what we can do and how we can help developers, and we hope to listen to more voices from developers and the community.

There are also many long-term development directions, such as payments, bridging payments in the crypto world, or combining with offline scenarios to target more users outside the circle. Restaking, gaming, and BTCFi are also areas we are trying to lay out.

The mission of BNB CHAIN is how to reach 1 billion users. We are willing to explore various possibilities, even though these paths may have limitations and may fail, our attempts will not stop, and we hope to hear more suggestions and voices from others.

12. Now that you have been working at BNB CHAIN for a while, how do you feel? How big is the team? You mentioned recruiting talent earlier; can you share more about that?

Ling Wei: After working at BNB CHAIN for a while, I feel the entire ecosystem's thirst for talent and the respect and amplification of individuals are rooted in the company culture. This is remarkable; many large companies cannot achieve this.

BNB CHAIN has always been in a state of "eagerly seeking talent," and we welcome passionate individuals to join at any time. I am currently building my own team, and everyone will soon see job postings. Other departments are also hiring; I heard from the marketing side yesterday that they need talents related to Chinese PR (brand public relations, content creation). If you are interested, please contact me immediately.

We not only need full-time employees but also welcome friends interested in different projects on BNB CHAIN to join and contribute to BNB CHAIN together. No matter what skills or interests you have, as long as you want to participate in building BNB CHAIN, we warmly welcome you.