Three Years of Building And What Comes Next

After three years of building apps, running services, and growing the Nostr community, Derek is reflecting on the journey, and what comes next. From founding NostrPlebs and NostrNests to launching the Grow Nostr Initiative and bringing Nostr Booths to conferences worldwide, it's been a wild ride. Now, a major change is on the horizon. This article is a milestone grounded in gratitude and a belief that we have to build the future we want to live in.

Nostr allows people from all backgrounds to build, create, and contribute in meaningful ways. I'm one of them. As I celebrate my three-year anniversary, I'm reflecting on the journey, building applications, running servers, launching community initiatives, and helping #grownostr every step of the way. All of it has led to this moment. 💜🤙🏻🫂

Over the past three years, I've had the chance to experiment, fail, learn, and ship, sometimes all in the same week. What started as curiosity and excitement to build, became a catalog of tools and services I never imagined I'd build.

Apps and Services:

NostrPlebs.com - Nostr’s first business and service provider.

NostrNests.com - The first audio spaces app built on Nostr.

YakBak.app - Create and share voice messages or micro-podcasts with ease.

Zappix.app - A platform for sharing photos and short vertical videos.

Plektos.app - Simplify meeting and event scheduling on Nostr.

ZapTrax.app - Stream music and support value-for-value musicians.

Zaplytics.app - track, analyze, and understand your content performance and zaps.

Podstr.org - A platform for podcasters and creators to build communities, merging Nostr with Podcasting 2.0.

SyncStr.vercel.app - A micro-app for managing and synchronizing your Nostr profile data and related items across multiple relays.

nostrelites.org - a large and popular Web-of-Trust relay based on my personal WoT.

Bots:

nostr:nprofile1qyvhwumn8ghj7erpwd5zumt0vd4kjmn809hh2tnrdakszrthwden5te0dehhxtnvdakqqg925m4ltle8uzf8sc8flpk06cmxj2gu63yzj6ce7alg5w4alru9ng4elrqp - for all the dads out there and lovers of dad jokes.

nostr:nprofile1qy88wumn8ghj7mn0wvhxcmmv9uq3wamnwvaz7tmjv4kxz7fwdehhxarj9e3xzmny9uqzpew9tqum9nr2ztqq9v24zklqsl5fnh8punq7atmrac8q258526a4ut3s5f - a simple bitcoin price bot.

npub1jwn77gw2t3cu477j4lf3jgxnz8kppjha7kv4gp72kralkqxx5r9qsdxutl - a bot that "leaks" and disrespects your bitcoin wallet.

nostr:nprofile1qy88wumn8ghj7mn0wvhxcmmv9uq36amnwvaz7tmwdaehgu3wvf5hgcm0d9hx2u3wwdhkx6tpdshsqgqx457q8q3sztsl2x6jhwyf54fhhjvg3682ttmwwjmnuu8ef0mkwvawyjpf - a bot that lists what's hot and trending every morning.

nostr:nprofile1qy88wumn8ghj7mn0wvhxcmmv9uq3uamnwvaz7tmwdaehgu3dwp6kytnhv4kxcmmjv3jhytnwv46z7qpqus9uc0sjjg0vyvh7vefgu2a96hx5up5gujl6pqays65hlk4de6hstd6j08 - a bot that announces when new Nests are launched.

nostr:nprofile1qqsdcv85tef5y3z9t4d6dlpm9t8unle2rnv25v0m2rrsh0at2220q9s8qljrv - a bot that posts Shakespeare's git commits to our community.

Community:

From large Bitcoin conferences to small local meetups, I’ve had the honor of sharing Nostr with people all over the world.

The first "Nostr Booth" was at BTC Prague 2024. This was just a small idea that grew into a global movement. Since then, I’ve helped bring Nostr Booths to events like Baltic Honeybadger, the Nostr Lounge at Bitcoin Conference 2025, and community-driven regional gatherings such as SatsBySW, NostrValley, Nostrville, NosVegas, and many others. This turned into the Grow Nostr Initiative, empowering the future of decentralized social communication through community initiatives, education, and outreach.

About six months ago, two and a half years of Nostr advocacy, on-boarding users, creating educational content, supporting developers, and amplifying their projects, turned into a part-time Developer Relations role at Soapbox . I'm deeply grateful to Alex Gleason and the team for the opportunity to keep creating and building with Nostr.

Being part of And Other Stuff has been incredible. AOS is a collective of builders, organizers, and experimenters creating freedom tech, open tools, protocols, and applications that strengthen human liberty. Our work flows through three interconnected hubs: the Lab, the Studio, and the Foundry, where ideas move from exploration to real-world impact.

Since joining, Soapbox has launched projects like Shakespeare , which brings AI-first development to the masses. It empowers anyone, regardless of technical background, to build for their community and reclaim the open web.

Over the past month, I've had the chance to help build diVine . I've never felt more bullish on what we're doing at Soapbox and AOS as a whole. We’re fostering Nostr’s growth and helping moonshots reach their potential. Again, I’ve never been more bullish.

The Future:

It's surreal to put all this down in writing. But this reflection has a destination: I'm leaving the job I've held for nearly 16 years.

That's terrifying, honestly. I could stay another 14 years and retire at 60, if I needed to. But we're at a point where we have to build the future we want and it's time for me to practice what I preach.

Starting January 1, 2026, I'll be full-time Developer Relations at Soapbox, working on Nostr.

Soapbox is the right place to do this. The team thinks in moonshots and ships with purpose. Between Shakespeare and what's still on the horizon, we're building tools that give people real power to create, connect, and own their online presence. I can't imagine a better crew to go all-in with.

Looking back over the last three years, I'm deeply grateful, not just for what Nostr has enabled me to build and be a part of, but for the friendships, support, and inspiration it's given me in return. It's allowed me to reach my full potential in ways I never expected. I do this because I genuinely love supporting freedom technology, and because I believe, wholeheartedly, that we must build the world we want to live in.

Thank you, Nostr. Wish me luck!

-Derek