🙅‍♂️ Not impressed

Hey frens, welcome back to The Drop.

Today we’re looking at a game using Sui that’s been accused of being an Axie clone, plus news about TON, Coinbase, NFT regulation, and more.

Let’s dive in.

— Kate Irwin

P.S. Let me know how you’re liking The Drop! Send me an email at [email protected].

Ronin cofounder accuses Seed Go of copyright infringement

Axie Infinity and Sky Mavis cofounder Alexander Larsen is calling out Sui-powered game Seed, also known as Seed Go, alleging copyright infringement. 

“This infringes on our Axie Infinity IP, and it’s not okay,” Larsen said in response to a tweet about the project.

He also tagged two Mysten Labs cofounders, plus Sui and Mysten Labs, asking them to address the issue “so we can all save money and time.”

A spokesperson for Sky Mavis separately confirmed to me that the company has informed the Sui team of the alleged infringement and is looking to resolve the issue outside of court.

Seed Go is tied to SeedDAO’s “Seed Combinator” gaming platform and uses pastel blob-like “Seedmon” NFT characters players can “breed.” It also has a token, SLOVE, and the SEED token. Seed Go is a Telegram mini-app.

Axie Infinity, which was launched back in 2018, made a name for itself as one of the earliest players in crypto gaming with its blob-like pastel “Axies,” NFT creatures that players can “breed” and use to battle each other. It has had a token called Smooth Love Potion token (SLP) since 2019, as well as the Axie Infinity (AXS) token.

Seed versus Axie Infinity

Jeffrey “Jiho” Zirlin, another Ronin and Sky Mavis cofounder, called Seed Go “Axie at home,” referencing the “food at home” memes. Such memes refer to an experience where a child asks their parents for takeout or to go to a restaurant.

But the parents say there’s food at home — and that food is bland, gross, or just not as good as the preferred option (the “at home” memes have spawned loads of spinoff references for years now, sometimes about movies or other forms of entertainment).

Seed Combinator, run by SeedDAO, has the support of Sui developer Mysten Labs, according to a press release from the game project. Another press release states that Seed was “inspired” by Pokemon Go and Axie Infinity, and notes that the Sui Foundation invested in its project.

A quick look at Seed Go via Telegram

Reached for comment, the Sui Foundation distanced itself and Mysten Labs from the Seed project. A Sui Foundation spokesperson confirmed to me that a small investment was made in Seed, but did not specify an amount. 

They noted that Mysten Labs was not involved in Seed’s game development, but it did help the game set up Sui smart contracts to connect the Telegram game to Sui.

The spokesperson emphasized that the Sui Foundation has very high standards for the projects it endorses, and it does not currently support Seed.  

SeedDAO did not respond to my request for comment.

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TON Foundation exec pushes for US expansion

The foundation behind The Open Network (TON), which uses Telegram but operates independently from it, has hired a new head of growth. Martin Masser is now trying to bring more awareness to the chain that saw a “tap-to-earn” run last year.

He told me in an interview that even in crypto circles, most know what Telegram is, but far fewer know about TON. Masser’s focused on expanding TON’s presence and awareness in the US and Europe. US residents can’t yet use TON Space (a self-custodial browser wallet inside Telegram), but Masser confirmed expanding TON Space to the US is part of the plan. That said, no live date for US access has yet been announced.

“I love the American market, especially. There’s so much that comes out of America, a lot of the narratives as well. We haven’t even had that to touch,” Masser said, adding: “I love going to America. There’s an energy. There’s a buzz, you know.”

Masser hopes that US builders will increasingly look to TON and Telegram as viable options for crypto projects like games, payments and remittance tools, DeFi miniapps, and other apps within the app that provide just about any service you could think of. 

“My role as head of growth isn’t to give narratives. I don’t want to tell people you have to do stickers, you have to do gifts, you have to do DeFi, you have to do all of this stuff. I do see foundations try to do that, try and force this narrative,” Masser said. 

“I love the fact, because people use Telegram, they have their ideas already, and then you’re giving them a lot more tools. I want to be there a) to support them, give them feedback, and also connect, because there’s lots of teams I’m already now connecting,” he added. “You can add so many more things.”

• The DOJ is reportedly looking into the recent Coinbase data breach that exposed some customer data. If your info was part of the breach, or you want to protect your identity and data more broadly, I’ve put some personal privacy tips here for you.

• Separately, Coinbase is also facing a proposed class-action lawsuit in the US over its biometric data practices. If this one proceeds, it’d be a big deal.

• Pro-crypto SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce shared her views on NFTs yesterday in a speech, where she argued, among other things, that “creator royalty” NFTs are not securities. Unsurprising given her continued positive stance toward crypto, but nonetheless still good news for the industry.

Not related to crypto, but, um this is impressive and terrifying in equal measure: