Telegram becomes TON network's largest validator, replacing TON Foundation

Telegram is replacing the TON Foundation as the largest validator of the TON network. With the move, TON becomes the exclusive blockchain for the Telegram Mini Apps ecosystem.

The strategic shift comes after Telegram founder Pavel Durov announced TON’s 6x fee reduction to nearly zero (~$0.0005). New updates to the TON website (improving developer tools and performance) are also scheduled to launch within 2-3 weeks.

The shift marks a full circle for the TON project, initially developed by Telegram in 2018 and later turned over to the volunteer-led TON Foundation in 2020 due to regulatory pressure from the U.S. SEC.

Following the announcement, Toncoin (TON) experienced a significant price increase, with daily gains of up to 28% as reported by CryptoRank. TON memecoins also hit a combined market cap of $156 million as the ecosystem rallied alongside its native token.

Meanwhile, Cryptopolitan predicts that TON should rise above $10 in 2029, but is unlikely to reach $100 or $1,000 before 2031. TON has had a bullish run since its inception despite seasonal market corrections. Looking ahead, TON has the potential to trade higher in the coming years.

Telegram becomes TON’s go-to stack for AI agents

Over the past six months, both Telegram and TON have shipped many updates for the future of AI agents. One of those updates has made TON sub-second, meaning that transactions now finalize in under one second on mainnet.

That combination matters a lot for anyone building AI agents that need to handle payments or interact with blockchain frequently. Telegram is the go-to platform for AI agent developers, and TON has become the chain that powers them.

Specifically, Telegram has nearly 1 billion monthly active users, and the platform already supports bots, mini apps, and payments natively. The users on the Telegram app can immediately access deployed AI agents because they are already there. That is unlike most platforms that require users to download an app, create an account, and go through an onboarding flow.

Telegram has also introduced “Topics” in private chats, allowing users to organize their 1-on-1 bot conversations into threads. That is especially useful for bots handling multiple tasks or workflows for the same user. For instance, a productivity bot could keep a “Research,” “Task,” and “Drafts” thread within the same chat.

Durov’s announcement turns Telegram into a ‘Super App’ for Web3

Durov’s announcement of a major strategic shift formally cemented TON as the exclusive blockchain for the messaging app’s 950 million+ monthly active users, aiming to turn it into a “Super App” for Web3. Block generation speeds have also improved significantly following the April 2026 “Catch 2.0” upgrade, enabling “near-instant” (sub-second) payments, similar to sending a message.

The seven-step “Make TON Great Again” (MTONGA) plan has further made microtransactions in Telegram mini-apps highly efficient. The integrated Telegram Wallet is receiving a UI refresh, improved support for multi-chain assets, and easier fiat on-ramps/off-ramps.

The messaging app is heavily promoting its mini-app ecosystem, which enables in-app gaming, trading, and decentralized AI services, such as “Coccon.” Usernames, virtual numbers, and special gifts (NFTs) are natively tokenized on TON, turning them into user-owned assets.

The formal integration—allowing mainstream Telegram users to interact with crypto natively within the app—creates demand for the TON token, as it will now be required for all platform-level transactions.

However, despite improving performance and stability, this integration still raises questions about decentralization, as Telegram assumes control from the community-driven Foundation.

The centralized control is also raising concerns because TON’s largest validator is now a private corporation rather than a community foundation.

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