Kevin Rose Revives Digg

Kevin Rose, the tech entrepreneur and co-creator of the Ethereum NFT project Moonbirds, is bringing back Digg, the once-prominent social news site that he co-founded in 2004.

Rose and Alexis Ohanian—co-owner of the venture and co-founder of former Digg competitor Reddit—acquired the brand with plans to prioritize “humanity and connection” while using AI for effective community and content moderation.

Along with Rose and Ohanian, Justin Mezzell, former COO of Rose’s company Proof and artist behind the Moonbirds collection, will serve as CEO of the new Digg.

> Digg: Old Rivals, New Vision
> Sign up to get early access when invites go live. Link in profile.
>
> — Digg (@digg) March 5, 2025

“At various times, I had been approached to repurchase Digg; it never felt right,” stated Rose. “Recently, we’ve hit an inflection point where AI can help users and moderators without replacing human conversation.”

The new platform will adopt a mobile-first approach, focusing on transparency and offering unspecified “rewards” for human effort.

“Kevin and I aim to create something better than what current social platforms provide,” Ohanian noted. “AI should manage the backend, enabling humans to forge genuine connections.”

Ohanian is also involved in efforts to acquire TikTok for the U.S. market, seeking to bring the platform on-chain.

Digg’s representatives have not confirmed any potential blockchain or crypto connections concerning user rewards. Rose’s return follows challenges with Proof and Moonbirds, which raised over $60 million but faced a significant drop in NFT values.

Originally selling for about $7,600 each, Moonbirds NFTs now start at around $1,000 in the secondary market.

Digg was acquired by Rose and Ohanian for an undisclosed sum and is backed by their VC firms, True Ventures and Seven Seven Six. Currently, users can sign up for early access by providing their email.

Edited by Andrew Hayward