In just a few months, Base has rapidly risen from a relatively unknown Layer 2 project to a leader in the Ethereum-compatible ecosystem, with TVL (Total Value Locked) surpassing $3.85 billion, exceeding Arbitrum and Optimism, becoming the most competitive new giant in the Layer 2 market. Backed by Coinbase and North American capital, the Base ecosystem experienced explosive growth in 2024, with inflows in November exceeding those of Solana, becoming one of the hottest wealth tracks in the blockchain field. However, despite achieving significant results in capital inflow and ecosystem growth, its on-chain transaction volume has not surpassed Solana, indicating that while rapidly expanding, Base still faces the dual challenges of sustained growth and market competition.
For example, in terms of market value, Clanker's CLANKER token has reached $70 million, reflecting the enormous appeal of the Base ecosystem and the current frenzy. Unlike traditional VC coin strategies, the rise of Meme tokens has driven on-chain data and user trading behavior back to exchange listings, forming a new ecological model. Users accumulate chips on-chain and then use exchange liquidity to exit, pushing CEX (centralized exchanges) to the corners of the market. This is also a powerful indication of the true beginning of a bull market, reminiscent of the on-chain liquidity scene that exploded during the 2020 DeFi Summer. This innovative mechanism showcases the vitality of the Base ecosystem while exposing the challenges it still faces in market competition.
On-chain data comparison between Base and Solana on Artemis
The relationship between public chains and ecosystem projects is like a couple dancing together, inseparable and mutually supportive. Whether Base can leverage the empowerment of AI agents and Meme culture to break through the $4 billion TVL barrier and become the market leader remains an unresolved challenge. Meanwhile, projects like Clanker and Virtual Protocol need to find fertile ground for growth within the Base ecosystem and rise with market heat, which is also worth monitoring. Clanker and Virtual Protocol are representative projects in this wave of enthusiasm for Base, with the former as a 'machine for creating hot Memes' and the latter spanning from GameFi to AI infrastructure to consumer platforms. Although they have different development paths, both have seized market opportunities and become focal points. Through the rise of these projects, we see the allure of the Base ecosystem and the current market frenzy, showcasing the deep entanglement and tacit cooperation between public chains and projects. Although the scenery is vast, it is still full of commercial and market-driven interests.
Clanker: The 'Hit Meme' machine of the Base ecosystem
Clanker is like a crazy invention that has crossed over from (Rick and Morty), becoming reality in the lab of the Base public chain - it is an AI Agent full of whimsical ideas, focused on turning ethereal concepts into real Meme tokens through social media and smart contracts. Imagine, like Rick, casually waving his hand, @clanker directly deploying an ERC-20 token on Farcaster, complete with liquidity pools and smart lock features - this is not just a technological magic, but a carnival of decentralized narratives. Clanker simplifies the operational process, relying on the Clanker.sol contract to realize the minting of ERC-20 tokens, Uniswap V3 pool initialization, liquidity injection and locking. Users only need to initiate a simple request on Farcaster to easily complete the deployment and distribution of tokens, having already created several Meme tokens with a market value exceeding ten million dollars. It breaks down technical barriers, giving everyone the chance to become a creator of the Meme economy, while also creating tangible benefits for the community through a 40% fee-sharing mechanism.
Clanker Technology Implementation Flowchart
However, this carnival is not merely for entertainment. Clanker is exploring how to integrate the concept of DeSci (decentralized science) into its system. For example, future tokens may no longer be just for humor or sentiment but could carry functions for research funding, sharing experimental results, or supporting open-source tools. Just as Rick invents solutions for cosmic problems, Clanker's tokens may become experimental tools for the research community, providing new funding models for scientists while reshaping the academic trust system with on-chain transparency. This combination of DeSci and Meme not only refreshes our perspective but also opens up an unexpected future for blockchain applications.
Clanker is a crazy yet creative laboratory that continuously expands the boundaries of Web3 amid laughter and innovation. Who knows if the next industry to have its rules rewritten by it will be science?
Performance of three major tokens: CLANKER, LUM, ANON
The story of the issuance of three major tokens: CLANKER, LUM, ANON, especially the combination of ANON with the anonymous posting tool anoncast, even attracted the attention of Ethereum founder Vitalik. Notably, the birth of AI Meme Luminous ($LUM) originated from an inspirational collision within the Farcaster community, where a user proposed the bold idea of creating a token symbolizing the collaborative achievements of humans and AI: with intertwined blue-gold light streams representing AI and human consciousness, forming an infinite loop, while the deep space background conveys a sense of technology and futurism. Through the Clanker platform, this idea was quickly realized, and the entire process of token minting, Uniswap V3 pool initialization, liquidity injection and locking, along with a 40% trading fee return mechanism, was automated. $LUM not only lowers technical barriers through simplified operational processes but also rapidly attracts community attention with the narrative theme of 'human and AI collaboration' and artistic visual design, becoming a cultural symbol within the Base ecosystem. Leveraging strong community dissemination power, $LUM's market value has now surpassed $30 million from its inception.
On one hand, Clanker, as an innovative platform, greatly lowers the technical threshold by simplifying user operations (such as generating tokens directly through @clanker) and collaborating with AI to issue tokens, allowing anyone to participate in the creation and dissemination of Meme tokens. On the other hand, observers can't help but doubt whether the Clanker model can be sustained? As a 'crypto circle' project, its current model focuses on speculation and dissemination, lacking actual 'use' scenarios. I want to draw on the thoughts of cultural anthropologists here; in reality, a culture is neither a purely physical process nor a merely idealistic construction. It is a living entity rooted in the soil, encompassing the simple instinctual lives of shepherds, fishermen, and farmers, as well as the highest achievements of artists and philosophers; just as individuals tightly integrate the nourishment and reproduction of animal life with higher rational and intellectual activities. As the world shifts from the tangible to the intangible, Clanker may not only be a technical tool but more so the core engine of innovation and cultural dissemination within the Base ecosystem, gradually promoting community interaction and the release of creativity.
Virtual Protocol: Inspirational entrepreneurial stories in the crypto circle
Although both belong to the Base ecosystem, Virtual has chosen a completely different path: product-driven at its core, emphasizing links between AI and Web2 users, gradually building a set of high-frequency 'use' tool systems. Google’s former CEO Eric Schmidt and A16Z co-founder Marc Andreessen pointed out the unique advantages of the Virtual team in high-frequency trial and error. From PathDAO to Virtual Protocol, the team has crossed GameFi, AI infrastructure, and consumer DApps within three years, achieving a miracle of market value growth from $10 million to $1 billion.
The early GitHub of PathDAO and the Twitter of the ecosystem leader
Virtual includes a diverse product line, including modules like MyShell's App Store. Although the market value and usage of individual products are not as high as Clanker's crypto Meme, it has opened up space in Web2 tool scenarios. $VIRTUAL is the native token of the Virtuals Protocol platform, designed specifically for the AI agent ecosystem. Users need to use $VIRTUAL to purchase AGENT tokens (such as $LUNA) and cannot exchange them for other tokens, making $VIRTUAL the only gateway to enter this ecosystem and purchase and invest in AI agents. The VIRTUAL token plays a crucial role in the entire system, driving economic activity within the platform and ensuring decentralization and fair distribution. Most agents on the platform are intellectual property agents representing specific personalities or characters, such as virtual life forms, frogs, memes, Donald Trump, Taylor Swift, etc. Meanwhile, developers are also creating functional agents to enhance user interaction with AI virtual life forms and ensure they can seamlessly integrate into the virtual world. These agents can generate real income and achieve long-term growth and shared ownership through tokenization mechanisms. Participants holding $VIRTUAL tokens and purchasing $LUNA tokens can share the potential rewards brought by the agents.
However, Virtual is questioned by Degen due to its 'usability' about whether its tool-oriented products are 'missing the point'? As a cryptocurrency ecosystem project, its core is 'use', not 'speculation', but does that mean it has lost its dissemination value?
Clanker: The 'rebel' of Liangshan
Clanker resembles Song Jiang during the forced Liangshan uprising, using its organizational power and dissemination effect to allow a group of grassroots heroes to carve out a place for themselves in a chaotic world. Clanker has attracted a large number of crypto users' attention by creating hot Meme tokens, creating a market frenzy, similar to Liangshan's slogan of 'acting on behalf of heaven', spreading the ideology of rebellion across the world.
But the problem is that Liangshan's banner ultimately becomes just a slogan, lacking long-term support. Many tokens issued by Clanker have a high market value, but remain at the conceptual level without solid use cases. This model is more like a desperate attempt to survive in a chaotic world, expanding influence through speculation, but it may not be able to sustain in the long run.
Virtual: The 'submission faction' of Liangshan
In contrast, Virtual's path resembles the submission faction in Liangshan. Their core demand is not resistance but rather to ensure that the brothers have food and drink, pursuing stability and order. Virtual focuses on refining product functionality, empowering users with AI tools, and building a bridge between Web2 and Web3, more like Liangshan maintaining its 'legitimate status' after accepting the court's submission.
Virtual emphasizes 'use' rather than 'speculation'. Although its tool-oriented products are frequently utilized, they lack the dissemination effect of cryptocurrencies, just like Liangshan after submission, which solved short-term livelihood issues but lost the initial spirit of rebellion. This model may offer more stability in the short term, but whether it can sustain the ideological value of cryptocurrencies remains uncertain.
Ideological resistance vs. livelihood compromise
The core contradiction of the Liangshan uprising lies in the game between the ideology of resistance and the reality of survival. Song Jiang's 'acting on behalf of heaven' represents the spirit of rebellion, while the final submission is a choice to find a realistic home for the brothers. This transformation shows the conflict between ideals and reality - the ideal is resistance, the reality is compromise.
Similarly, the divergence between Clanker and Virtual reflects another contradiction within the cryptocurrency ecosystem, the opposition of 'speculation' and 'use', which actually reflects a deeper issue in cryptocurrency: as BTC and ETH gradually gain mainstream acceptance and enter the era of war reserves and compliance, is there a need for more product innovation or stronger ideological dissemination? Just as Song Jiang sighed while overlooking the camp from the mountain, 'As we are bandits, how can we not submit to the court? If we rebel, it is only for a stable life; how can we forever be rebels?' This statement aptly expresses the mental journey from resistance to realistic compromise, providing us with a mirror to reflect on the future of cryptocurrency.
