I saw a post on X the other day that stuck with me.

@financedystop shared a stat:

“60% of general admission ticket buyers at Coachella 2025 used Buy-Now-Pay-Later to pay for tickets.”
Tickets ranged between $599 to $1,399.

Captioned simply: “Coachella has a credit problem.”
It made me pause—not because of the debt, but because of what it says about how we chase meaning.

This isn’t about music.
This is about social capital—and the crazy lengths people are going to earn it.

The Clout Game Has New Rules

Let’s be honest.
Coachella isn’t just a festival anymore.
It’s a social checkpoint.

A selfie in front of the rainbow tower = status.
A story from the Sahara tent = you were part of something.

And for a generation where only 26% of Gen Z in the US believe they’ll own a home by 35 (Forbes, 2025), the choice is clear:
Why save for a future you’re not even sure you’ll get, when you can live one culturally significant weekend now?

But the Math Isn’t Mathing

$2,000 for a weekend isn’t crazy if you’re well-off.
But if you need BNPL to go, that’s a signal.

It’s not just about affording the experience—it’s about financing your social proof.

Some of the replies said it best:

“Imagine needing to finance $600.”
“If you’re paying $102 for tacos, you need help.”

I get the criticism. But I also get the psychology. In a world where presence is performance and attention is capital, clout pays.
It’s just getting way too expensive.

The Real Problem: We’re Buying Social Capital Instead of Earning It

And that’s where I think platforms are failing us.

Right now, social capital is locked behind:

• Debt

• Consumption

• Algorithmic attention

What if we could flip that?

What if platforms rewarded participation, not purchases?
What if clout didn’t require credit?

Platforms of the next decade

We’ll see the rise of platforms that:

• Let you earn visibility without debt

• Turn your participation into portable reputation

• Allow clout to compound into economic opportunity

• And align incentives so users benefit from what they build

These platforms won’t just entertain.

They’ll upgrade social mobility, using tech to compress what took gatekeepers decades into a few seasons of consistent contribution.

We’re witnessing a cultural inversion:

Financial capital is no longer the only entry point.
Social capital—earned, displayed, and owned—is becoming the dominant force.

But the current system is broken.
We're chasing clout through consumption and credit.

The next shift is clear: 

Build platforms where people earn social capital through contribution, creativity, and coordination.

That’s how we exit this cycle.
That’s how we unlock the internet’s full potential.
And that’s the world I want to help build.