MEGA Cuts 20% of Workforce After MegaETH Rebrand and AI Pivot

$MEGA to Fund New Products From Existing Treasury

$MEGA plans to finance new products through its existing treasury as the project changes its strategic focus following workforce cuts. Each product will be built on MegaETH, the blockchain’s name after the rebrand.

The layoffs affected employees working in blockchain development, wallet operations, ecosystem support, and communications. Kong said $MEGA’s founders and core engineers remain committed to the project, but she did not disclose how many employees were affected or provide figures for individual teams.

Further information about the providers and models involved in the new products will be announced at launch, Kong told The Block. The funding approach means the project will draw on resources already held by its treasury rather than announcing a separate financing round in the source material.

Why MegaETH Is Moving Toward Application Development

The strategic shift follows MegaETH’s decision to focus on building its own applications rather than continuing to operate the Mega Mafia accelerator. In July, MegaETH announced that it would close the accelerator, which supported about 20 teams across two cohorts.

The participating teams raised $80 million combined. However, Kong said most of the accelerator’s successful applications were already being developed elsewhere, reducing the rationale for continuing the program as a central part of MegaETH’s strategy.

AI Products Address Verification and Data Concerns

The move toward applications also reflects concerns about how users evaluate AI services from unfamiliar providers. In a November white paper, Yilong Li and Lei Yang said buyers can struggle to verify which models those providers use.

Li and Yang also highlighted uncertainty over how suppliers handle customer data. Under the $MEGA proposal, more suppliers could compete by offering comparable AI services, creating a broader marketplace of AI products built on MegaETH.

Why This Matters

The changes place MegaETH’s own product development at the center of its next phase. By using its existing treasury to fund applications on MegaETH, $MEGA is moving away from an accelerator-led approach and toward products developed directly within its ecosystem.

The project’s next steps will depend on the products introduced at launch, including the providers and models they use. For now, MegaETH has not disclosed the affected workforce totals or the specific teams that will build each product.

Frequently Asked Questions

How will $MEGA fund its new products?

$MEGA will use its existing treasury to fund the products.

Where will the new products operate?

Each new product will run on MegaETH, which remains the blockchain’s name after the rebrand.

Why did MegaETH close the Mega Mafia accelerator?

MegaETH announced that it would close the accelerator and focus on building its own applications. About 20 teams participated across two cohorts and raised $80 million combined, while Kong said most successful apps were already in development elsewhere.