Shiba Inu Lead Hides Identity Again, Appears in Public with The Mask

Shytoshi Kusama, the pseudonymous Shiba Inu lead developer, continues to conceal his true identity despite attending a Web3 conference in Japan.

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The development occurred today at the Infinity Venture Summit (IVS), which is currently being held in Kyoto, Japan. 

Kusama made his first public appearance hours after disclosing that he would be at the IVS’ Shiba Inu for a meet-and-greet with Shiba Inu enthusiasts. Interestingly, the Shiba Inu lead developer kept to his word by attending the event in person. 

His Identity Remains Concealed 

However, he attended the IVS conference in a masked costume, concealing his identity from the public. Videos and pictures of the masked Kusama have gone viral within the Shiba Inu community. 

According to clips from Japan-based SHIB community member Kuro, attendees of the conference exchanged pleasantries with Kusama during the meet-and-greet session at Shiba Inu’s dedicated booth. 

Shytoshi!!🔥Shytoshi!!🔥🔥🔥

動画提供元 : @riri_shibarmy

#柴犬コイン #SHIB #IVS2024 #IVSCrypto pic.twitter.com/z5rweQoCKV

— KURO🐾SHIBARMY JPN🇯🇵 (@kuro_9696_9696) July 5, 2024

Also, WeCreate3, a Web3 student community in Japan, shared footage of their brief meeting with Kusama. They revealed plans to collaborate with Shiba Inu in the future. 

Thank you! @ShytoshiKusama . As a student web3 community in Japan, we are looking forward to collaborating with SHIB! To the moon!🚀🚀🚀

We are the student SHIB army🔥🔥#SHIBARMY #SHIBCommunity #SHIB pic.twitter.com/wpA4YhITMQ

— WeCreate3 (@We_Create_3) July 5, 2024

Community Fumes at Kusama’s Anonymous Persona 

Expectedly, Kusama’s public outing at the IVS conference elicited mixed reactions among crypto enthusiasts. While some commended Kusama for attending the event in person, others fumed at his continuous efforts to hide behind a mask. Consequently, they suggested that SHIB enthusiasts at the venue should take the mask off him.  

can you just pull of his mask

— World Blog (@WorldBlog582838) July 5, 2024

At the moment, the real identity behind Kusama remains unknown. For context, Shiba Inu was launched in August 2022 by an anonymous developer or group of developers who goes by the pseudonym ‘Ryoshi.’ 

The pseudonymous founder oversaw Shiba Inu’s operation for nearly two years until his surprising exit in 2022. Afterward, Kusama and his team took up the baton and has led the project’s ecosystem development ever since. It bears mentioning that Shytoshi and his team are overseeing the Shiba Inu ecosystem. Shiba Inu as a token remains independent and free of any central authority.

Despite Shiba Inu’s successes under his leadership, he has concealed his real identity away from the public, attributing this decision to his ‘shy and quiet’ demeanor. Earlier this week, he said the moment has come for him to change this nature to become more assertive in promoting Web3.