Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Winklevoss twins slam Facebook as their crypto business booms

Winklevoss twins slam Facebook as their crypto business booms

Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss waged a famous legal battle against Mark Zuckerberg over Facebook’s beginnings. Now, they’re predicting the social network’s demise.

The Harvard-educated twins — who were portrayed by Armie Hammer as losers in the 2010 flick “The Social Network” — have since become billionaires thanks to their bold investments in Bitcoin and other controversial cryptocurrencies.

Emboldened by surging prices for digital money as big companies from Tesla to Goldman Sachs embrace it, the pair are now upping the ante, claiming that “centralized” social networks like Facebook aren’t long for this world.

“The idea of a centralized social network is just not going to exist five or 10 years in the future,” Tyler Winklevoss told Forbes in a Monday profile when asked about Facebook. “There’s a membrane or a chasm between the old world and this new crypto-native universe. And we’re the conduit helping people transcend the offline into the online.”

The 39-year-old twins known as the “Winklevii” have filled their portfolio with startups trying to decentralize services dominated by tech titans like Facebook, Microsoft and Google alongside a digital art platform that at the center of the recent NFT craze, according to Forbes.

The twins reportedly entered that universe nearly a decade ago after winning a $65 million settlement in their legal battle with Zuckerberg, whom they accused of stealing their idea for a social network.

They started buying bitcoin in 2012 after getting a tip from some “early adopters” on the Mediterranean party island of Ibiza, Forbes says. Now, Bitcoin and the so-called blockchain technology behind it power a business empire that gave them a combined net worth of more than $6 billion last month, the outlet reports.

One of their biggest successes is Nifty Gateway, which has helped fuel the explosion in the market for non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, digital assets whose ownership is stored on a blockchain ledger.

The platform has seen an explosion of interests in its “drops” of NFTs from artists such as Beeple, who just sold a token at the Christie’s auction house for $69 million, according to Forbes.

“We’re doing $4 million in five minutes now” for releases that would have fetched $50,000 a year ago, Cameron Winklevoss told Forbes.

Nifty Gateway was bought in 2019 by Gemini, the Winklevii’s cryptocurrency exchange that shares its name with NASA’s second space mission. The twins are so dedicated to the space-exploration theme that they call Gemini’s employees “astronauts,” they told Forbes.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Woman Receives Gift Card for Christmas – Discovers It Is ‘Worth’ 63,000,000,000,000,000 Pounds
United Nations Calls for Global Action Against Disinformation and Hate Speech Online
Tucker Carlson warns of an inevitable clash in Western societies over mass migration
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman praises the rapid progress of Chinese tech companies.
Poland's President Karol Nawrocki ENDS support for Ukrainian citizens:
Italy's PM Giorgia Meloni highlights record employment and economic growth
Chancellor Friedrich Merz Re-elected as CDU Leader, Opposes AfD Influence
Trump Directs Government to Release UFO and Alien Information
Trump Signs Global 10% Tariffs on Imports
UK Government Considers Law to Remove Prince Andrew from Royal Line of Succession
Two teens arrested in France for alleged terror plot.
US Supreme Court Voids Trump’s Emergency Tariff Plan, Reshaping Trade Power and Fiscal Risk
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis advocates for a ban on minors using social media.
Meanwhile in Time Square, NYC One of the most famous landmarks
Jensen Huang just told the story of how Elon Musk became NVIDIA’s very first customer for their powerful AI supercomputer
Former British Prince Andrew Arrested on Suspicion of Misconduct in Public Office
Former President Yoon Suk Yeol Sentenced to Life in Prison for Abuse of Authority
Unitree Robotics founder Wang Xingxing showcases future robot deployment during Spring Festival Gala.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz calls for real name use on social media.
Italian Police Arrest Man After Alleged Attempt to Abduct Toddler at Bergamo Supermarket, Child Hospitalised With Fractured Femur
British Tourist Arrested at Hong Kong Airport After Meltdown and Vandalism
European Commission Plans Purchase Incentives Limited to Vehicles Manufactured Largely in the EU
French District of Pas-de-Calais Introduces Immediate License Suspension for Drivers Using Mobile Phones
Volkswagen Targets €60 Billion in Cost Reductions as Sales Decline and Global Pressures Intensify
Eighty-Year-Old Lottery Winner Sentenced to 16.5 Years for Drug Trafficking
Rubio Calls for Sweeping U.N. Reform, Saying It Has Failed to End Wars in Gaza and Ukraine
10,000 Condoms Distributed at Winter Olympics 2026 Athlete Village Depleted Within 72 Hours
Poland's President Advocates for Evaluating Independent Nuclear Weapons Development
Mayor of Serdobsk in Russia’s Penza Region Resigns After Housing Certificates Granted to Migrant Family Trigger Public Outcry
China’s EV Makers Face Mandatory Return to Physical Buttons and Door Handles in Driver-Distraction Safety Overhaul
UK Green Party Considering Proposal to Legalize Heroin for an Inclusive Society
OpenAI and DeepCent Superintelligence Race: Artificial General Intelligence and AI Agents as a National Security Arms Race
We will protect them from the digital Wild West.’ Another country will ban social media for under-16s
Heineken announces cut of 6,000 jobs due to declining beer demand
Apple iPhone Lockdown Mode blocks FBI data access in journalist device seizure
Belgium: Man Charged with Rape After Faking Payment to Sex Worker
KPMG Urges Auditor to Relay AI Cost Savings
Canada Opens First Consulate in Greenland Amid Rising Geopolitical Tensions
China unveils plans for a 'Death Star' capable of launching missile strikes from space
Investigation Launched at Winter Olympics Over Ski Jumpers Injecting Hyaluronic Acid
U.S. State Department Issues Urgent Travel Warning for Citizens to Leave Iran Immediately
Wall Street Erases All Gains of 2026; Bitcoin Plummets 14% to $63,000
Eighty-one-year-old man in the United States fatally shoots Uber driver after scam threat
Political Censorship: French Prosecutors Raid Musk’s X Offices in Paris
AI Invented “Hot Springs” — Tourists Arrived and Were Shocked
France Begins Phasing Out Zoom and Microsoft Teams to Advance Digital Sovereignty
Tech Market Shifts and AI Investment Surge Drive Global Innovation and Layoffs
Global Shifts in War, Trade, Energy and Security Mark Major International Developments
Markets Jolt as AI Spending, US Policy Shifts, and Global Security Moves Drive New Volatility
Tesla Ends Model S and X Production and Sends $2 Billion to xAI as 2025 Revenue Declines
×