- Solana Labs has announced the August launch of its Seeker phone, a blockchain-integrated mobile device designed to enhance Web3 accessibility.
- Alongside the launch, the new SKR token will be introduced to provide ownership rights and user incentives within the Seeker ecosystem.
The Solana mobile team shared some updates, along with details about new technology. They are working to build a strong ecosystem connecting phones, users, and developers in the world of crypto and blockchain, also known as Web3. This shows Solana is continuing its focus on making Web3 easily available directly on mobile phones.
Building the Solana Mobile Ecosystem
Solana Labs’ mobile team announced they plan to start shipping their new Seeker phone beginning August 4th. The news comes after months of development for this new version of Solana’s mobile device. So far, over 150,000 Seeker units are being produced, according to a press release from the company. This suggests Solana is preparing for significant interest in its latest mobile offering. Building on their previous experience with mobile devices, Solana is introducing the Seeker to further its vision of web3 on the go.
Solana Seeker, Saga and SKR Token
Before the Seeker, Solana Mobile released its first device, called Saga. The Saga phone initially received mixed reactions from the Web3 community. Some people were very enthusiastic, calling it Web3’s “iPhone moment,” believing it would transform how people access crypto and decentralised applications on mobile.
However, others pointed to past issues with the Solana network, specifically mentioning network outages, as a potential problem for a dedicated Solana phone.
The Saga phone didn’t see widespread adoption immediately. Its popularity didn’t take off until late 2023. There was a significant increase in the value of certain memecoins that were airdropped specifically to Saga phone owners, which made the devices unexpectedly profitable.
This surge in value turned the phones into highly sought-after items. Due to this sudden and high demand, some Saga units were even listed and sold on platforms like eBay for thousands of dollars, far above their original price.
Learning from Saga’s journey, the Solana team is now launching the Seeker phone, aiming to continue building this mobile web3 platform.
Alongside the Seeker phone, Solana is also launching the SKR token. The Solana Mobile team states that this token will be crucial for the ecosystem.
SKR will power economy, incentives, and ownership across the ecosystem,
they wrote, explaining that it will encourage activities, reward users and developers, and provide ownership rights.
The goal is to align the interests of users, developers creating apps, and companies making hardware to help the web3 mobile ecosystem grow together.
At the heart of this mobile platform’s technology is something called TEEPIN. This stands for Trusted Execution Environment Platform Infrastructure Network. TEEPIN is described as a decentralised framework built in three layers. Its purpose is to allow users, their devices, and developers to interact with each other in a secure way that doesn’t require anyone to trust a central company or authority.
Anatoly Yakovenko, co-founder and CEO of Solana Labs, highlighted the importance of TEEPIN. He said,
TEEPIN represents the next evolution in mobile — a framework where trust isn’t granted by a central authority but verified through cryptography.
This means the security and trust in the system come from advanced coding and mathematical proofs (cryptography) rather than relying on a single entity to be honest and secure.
With the upcoming launch of the Seeker phone, the introduction of the SKR token, and the foundation of the TEEPIN technology, Solana is actively developing a complete ecosystem designed for using decentralised applications and services directly from a mobile phone. They are putting in place the hardware, the economic system, and the secure technology needed to make Web3 mobile-friendly and accessible. Today, Solana is trading at $179.02, up 6% in the last 24 hours.