Zora, the on-chain social protocol transforming content into tradable assets on Ethereum and Optimism, is making waves. With significant backing from Coinbase Ventures, Zora is more than just an NFT marketplace; it's a platform designed to allow memes, videos, art, and podcasts to be instantly minted as coins. Despite its protocol-level successes and market cap surges, Zora's iOS application is facing significant criticism for its performance and stability issues, presenting a stark contrast to its innovative backend.
The Team: Driving Zora's Vision
Founded in 2020, Zora's team comprises experienced individuals from the crypto and tech industries, attracting substantial investment from venture capital firms like Coinbase Ventures, a16z, and Variant. Coinbase, in particular, has not only invested but also integrated Zora's technology into its ecosystem, including support for its Layer 2 solution, Base.
- •Steve Krause (Co-Founder & Visionary Lead): A former Paradigm trader, Krause has been instrumental in pushing Zora's vision for creator coins and on-chain social interactions for over five years.
- •Dee Goens (Co-Founder & COO): As the operations lead, Goens has scaled Zora's operations from early NFT collaborations with brands like Gucci and artists like Grimes to its current social finance focus.
- •Tyson Battistella (Co-Founder & Tech Lead): Battistella is the engineering force behind Zora's core protocol, focusing on smart contract development for on-chain minting and economic incentives that enable its unique "post-for-free, earn-on-trades" model.
- •Slava Kim (Co-Founder): An early Ethereum developer with previous roles at Coinbase, Kim focuses on decentralized distribution and ensuring the protocol remains gas-efficient on Layer 2 networks.
- •Shahab Asghar (General Counsel): Asghar provides crucial legal expertise, navigating regulatory landscapes and intellectual property concerns vital for a platform dealing with "content as coins."
Strategic advisor Steve Jang, formerly of Kakao and Paradigm, also plays a key role in amplifying Zora's synergies, particularly with Coinbase.
iOS App Performance: A Technical Critique
Despite the strength of its protocol and team, Zora's iOS application (version 4.x as of October 2025) has been widely criticized by users for significant performance issues. Reports from the X feed highlight a range of problems, including slow loading times, frequent crashes, and failures in core functionalities. These issues suggest a potential disconnect between the robust backend and the user-facing mobile experience, possibly due to rushed development or integration challenges with newer iOS versions.
User feedback indicates problems such as app freezes upon launch, network and DNS-related connectivity issues, blurred user interfaces, purchase timeouts, and a lack of multitasking capabilities for live streams. These issues appear to be exacerbated by recent updates and may stem from the use of hybrid web wrapper technologies that struggle with iOS-specific quirks.
User-Reported Issues from X Feed:
- •October 20, 2025: User @neal_grieco reported persistent app freezing, particularly during the purchase process, which resulted in timeouts and complete app lock-ups. This was observed even after multiple uninstalls, restarts, and attempts through the Base app and browser.
- •October 20, 2025: User @ohdndy noted discrepancies in the user interface based on network connection (mobile vs. WiFi) and experienced connection problems when opening the app after switching networks, suggesting potential DNS or network locking issues.
- •October 20, 2025: User @Sister_Solanas described frequent freezes and crashes following the latest app update, necessitating force closes. The lack of integrated bug reporting tools on the app was also highlighted. This issue was echoed by user @cdn_nick_.
- •April 19, 2025: User @isoLectik reported a blurred UI, including their own profile, indicating potential rendering failures or Core Graphics glitches within the application.
- •October 17, 2025: User @brix_farm requested the implementation of video minimization for live streams, allowing users to listen and scroll simultaneously, a feature currently unavailable on the iOS app.
Official acknowledgments of bugs, such as those reported on August 8, 2024, regarding slow mint updates and non-functional buy/sell buttons on mobile web, indicate that backend fixes are being addressed, but persistent issues on the iOS platform remain a concern. User @wbnns flagged an issue to @js_horne on October 21, 2025, who confirmed the team was investigating.
The pattern of complaints, particularly spiking after version 4 updates, suggests that the iOS app may be suffering from issues common to hybrid development frameworks, potentially neglecting specific iOS sandboxing requirements. This contrasts with the experience reported on Android, which, while not without its own issues, seems to be perceived differently by users.
Path Forward: Enhancing User Experience
For the Zora team, including co-founders Jacob, Dee, and Tyson, prioritizing the mobile application's stability and performance is crucial for driving user adoption. Key areas for improvement include ensuring crash-free launches by implementing robust error tracking like Sentry.io, enhancing network resilience with solutions like Cloudflare Warp, and enabling native iOS Picture-in-Picture functionality for live streams to improve multitasking capabilities.
By addressing these technical challenges and leveraging the support from partners like Coinbase, Zora can work towards aligning its exceptional protocol with a polished and reliable user experience, ensuring that its innovative features are accessible to a wider audience.