We’ve all been there. You hear someone casually mention they bought Solana at $1. Or they were “early” to NFTs. Or they farmed some obscure token that 100x’d before you even knew how to pronounce it.
And you’re just sitting there like, “How the hell do people find these trends before they blow up?”
Let’s cut the fluff. You’re not late to crypto. You’re just not early yet. Here’s a battle-tested, no-BS guide to spotting the next big thing before it hits your Twitter feed.
Step 1: Be Where the Noise Starts
Most people get their crypto news after something happens.
If you want to be early, you need to go upstream—where ideas are raw, messy, and mostly ignored.
Where to Hang Out:
- Crypto Twitter (aka CT): Follow devs, traders, degens, and founders—not just influencers shilling coins. Think accounts like Cobie, Hsaka, Arthur Hayes, and anon researchers.
- Crypto Discords & Telegrams: Jump into project channels and see what actual builders are talking about.
- Podcasts: Shows like Bankless, Unchained, and The Delphi Podcast often drop alpha weeks before YouTube catches on.
- Reddit: Subreddits like r/cryptocurrency, r/ethfinance, and r/defi can be hit-or-miss—but every now and then, a gem shows up.
Pro Tip: Use Twitter Lists to group insiders and mute everything else. Clean feed = sharper edge.
Step 2: Watch What the Smart Money is Doing
Want to know what the big players are buying before the rest of the world does?
Here’s how:
- On-chain sleuthing: Use tools like:
You’ll be surprised how often a new project starts quietly, soaking up whale capital before it makes headlines.
Example: Before Friend.tech launched, eagle-eyed users spotted top wallets moving ETH into its contract. If they’re getting in quietly, it’s worth paying attention.
Step 3: Actually Use New Projects
Here’s the real alpha most people are too lazy to act on:
Get your hands dirty. Don’t just read Medium posts. Don’t just watch YouTube explainers. Actually use the damn protocol.
If a project is new and barely anyone’s using it, you’re early. And sometimes, just showing up earns you rewards later.
Why this works:
- You learn faster than the market.
- You position yourself for potential airdrops.
- You start seeing the weaknesses, pain points, and potential first.
Airdrops like Arbitrum, Optimism, and dYdX rewarded early users with thousands of dollars, just for being active.
Where to find new projects:
- Dune Dashboards: Find usage stats for new protocols.
- DefiLlama’s “Trending” tab: See what’s gaining TVL fast.
- GitHub: See what devs are actually shipping. Projects with high commit activity often signal a working product, not just vaporware.
Step 4: Understand the Cycles (And Spot the Narrative Early)
Crypto doesn’t move in a straight line. It runs on narratives—short bursts of hype where certain ideas dominate the market.
Examples:
- 2020: DeFi summer
- 2021: NFTs and play-to-earn
- 2022: DAOs and rebase tokens
- 2023: Modular blockchains and ZK tech
- 2024: Restaking and meme coins 3.0
How to spot a narrative early:
- Are multiple projects solving the same problem at once?
- Are devs suddenly integrating a new piece of tech (like EigenLayer or Celestia)?
- Are influencers using new lingo that sounds vague—but keeps repeating?
Another tip: Check what people are naming their Twitter accounts. When you start seeing “ZK Wizard” or “Restaking Maximalist” show up in handles… you’re close.
Step 5: Pay Attention to GitHub, Not Just Charts
Charts lie but Code doesn’t. New trends often come from devs building quietly for months before launch.
Use sites like:
- CryptoMiso: Tracks GitHub commit activity.
- GitHub Trending (Web3 category): See what repos are blowing up.
- Token Terminal: Shows which projects are actually generating real revenue (not just farming hype).
This is especially useful in bear markets when narratives go quiet—but devs keep building. Before LayerZero got mainstream attention, dev activity on GitHub showed it was quietly gaining traction in bridging tech.
Step 6: Identify the Trend Before It Goes Mainstream
Here’s a gut check. If you see any of these signs, the trend is probably already halfway cooked:
❌ Your favorite YouTuber is talking about it.
❌ Your coworker who just made a Coinbase account mentions it.
❌ It’s trending on CoinGecko or has a token pump guide on TikTok.
That doesn’t mean you can’t still profit—just know you’re playing musical chairs. Someone’s gonna be left holding the bag.
Instead, look for friction. Early trends always feel weird, buggy, or confusing.
If you’re thinking, “Why would anyone use this?” or “This doesn’t make sense,” that’s often where innovation is hiding.
Rule of thumb: If it’s polished, it’s probably late. If it’s messy, hard to use, and only 500 people on Twitter are talking about it—you might’ve found something early.
Step 7: Take Small Bets, Not Giant Leaps
The key isn’t to go all-in on the first thing that looks shiny.
Instead:
- Make small, consistent plays.
- Participate in communities.
- Provide small amounts of liquidity.
- Test things with burner wallets.
- Don’t FOMO into $50M market cap coins when the tech barely works.
This gives you exposure without nuking your portfolio when something inevitably goes sideways.
Bonus: Signals to Watch for Emerging Trends
Still not sure what to keep an eye on? These signs usually hint that something’s heating up:
✅ Explainer threads on Twitter from big accounts
✅ Major VCs like a16z or Paradigm quietly investing
✅ Small projects pivoting toward similar tech
✅ Sudden surge in GitHub activity
✅ Telegram groups popping up overnight
✅ Weird memes that reference a niche protocol
✅ People arguing about it in the replies 😄
Final Thoughts: Be Curious, Not Just Early
Finding the next trend isn’t about copying calls or blindly following influencers.
It’s about paying attention, staying curious, and being willing to experiment before it’s obvious.
Because by the time it hits the mainstream, it’s already priced in. “The early bird gets the worm—but the second mouse gets rekt buying the top.”
So plug into the signal. Tune out the noise. And start playing in the shallow end before the herd jumps in.
Disclaimer: None of this is financial advice. Always DYOR and don’t ape into anything just because someone on Twitter says it’s the next big thing.
