Charles Hoskinson’s Midnight Airdrop Targets 37M Wallets, Excludes VCs

Charles Hoskinson is done with crypto rivalries. Speaking at Consensus 2025, he revealed fresh details about the upcoming Glacier Drop, a massive airdrop tied to Cardano’s privacy-focused sidechain, Midnight. This airdrop targets 37M wallets across 8 blockchains for their native currency, including BTC, ETH, ADA, XRP, SOL, BSC, AVAX, and POL, distributing NIGHT either DUST. Midnight mainnet will launch by the end of 2025.

No VCs, Just the People

Unlike most airdrops, this one won’t hand anything to venture capitalists. Hoskinson made it clear that no venture capital firms will be involved. Instead, the entire supply will go to everyday users, who will be free to keep, trade, or ignore the tokens. Midnight’s tokens, both the governance-focused NIGHT and the privacy-focused DUST, will be given to retail users only. This decision is part of what he described as a principled approach, choosing to bypass big investors and give back to the broader crypto community.

Cross-Chain, No Drama

Midnight isn’t just about privacy. It introduces a new economic model that lets developers from different blockchain ecosystems build and interact without needing to convert tokens. Developers can pay network fees in their native tokens like ETH, SOL, or BTC, while validators from any chain can earn rewards by supporting the network. This model is meant to encourage cooperation across ecosystems rather than competition.

Airdrop with a Message

Hoskinson said he turned down VC interest, brushing off their hype and quick-money mindset. For him, this drop is about principle, giving tokens to the community, not insiders. Midnight is still in testnet, with mainnet expected later in 2025, but the message is already clear: stop the tribalism, start building together.

“This is the project I’m having the most fun with,” he said. “It’s where I get to be friends with everybody.”