I think the web-based protocol is the correct solution. Unfortunately it has been shot down already in Mastodon github issues, so another fedi project would hav

I think the web-based protocol is the correct solution. Unfortunately it has been shot down already in Mastodon github issues, so another fedi project would have to take up the mantle on solving this. Akkoma has 'Remote Follow' which uses an OAuth flow to execute the follow action on your home server. I think that's too heavy of a solution but it is pretty decent UX. Definitely better than Mastodon's which primarily prompts you to 'Sign in' 'On this server'. That's almost never relevant to the user and should not be the primary prompt when you click Follow.