As whispers of an initial public offering (IPO) loom over Discord, anxiety among its user base is reaching a fever pitch. The social media platform, beloved by countless communities, faces fears of becoming just another victim of the dreaded 'enshittification'—a term highlighting how once-great services degrade for the sake of profit.

In a candid interview with Engadget, Discord's co-founder and CTO, Stanislav Vishnevskiy, shared that the company is acutely aware of these concerns. "I understand the anxiety and concern," he stated. "What people fear is what differentiates a great, long-term focused company from the rest."

However, long-time Discord users have every reason to be apprehensive, particularly with the company's recent pivot towards advertising. After avoiding ads since its launch in 2015, Discord began displaying them across its desktop and console applications in March 2024. This shift includes intrusive video ads on mobile, and a new rewards system involving 'Orbs' that users can earn by engaging with advertisements.

Leadership Changes Fuel Uncertainty

Further fueling speculation about Discord’s future, co-founder and CEO Jason Citron stepped down in April, making way for Humam Sakhnini—who brings experience from Activision Blizzard. Though Citron claimed there were "no specific plans" for going public, his successor's hiring suggests the possibility looms closer than ever.

Vishnevskiy, in his conversation with Engadget, insists he is vigilant about avoiding enshittification. "I'm the one who’s constantly bringing up enshittification at internal meetings," he revealed. He emphasized the importance of smart monetization that enhances user experience rather than detracting from it.

Ads or User Experience: What's the Balance?

While the introduction of ads has been met with skepticism, for now, Discord’s ad placements remain minimally invasive. Advertisements appear in sidebars and only expand upon user interaction, allowing a degree of user agency.

Moreover, Discord has a history of reversing unpopular decisions. Take, for instance, their quick retreat from exploring cryptocurrency wallets in 2021, prompted by backlash from users wary of NFTs. Vishnevskiy noted, 'We greatly underestimated the sensitivity the general user base had to the topic of NFTs.'

Just as enlightening is Discord's previous shutdown of its gaming store, which the company halted after realizing that most premium subscribers were not engaging with the games.

A Focus on Gaming and User Satisfaction

Reassuringly for fans of the platform, Vishnevskiy revealed that these experiences solidified Discord’s commitment to gaming. The company aims to hone its focus on gaming-centric services, such as Nitro subscriptions, while abandoning AI features that fell short of expectations.

In a bid to merge interests between gamers and developers, Vishnevskiy pointed to the Orbs system as a way to enhance user engagement without degrading the service.

For those still skeptical about Discord’s path, there are glimmers of hope. While the tech world has seen its share of companies falter, history shows that redemption and recovery—what we call 'unshittification'—is achievable.