Article reprinted from: BlockBeats
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 dollars, exceeding Arbitrum and Optimism, becoming the most competitive new giant in the Layer 2 market. With strong backing from Coinbase and support from North American capital, the Base ecosystem saw explosive growth in 2024, with inflows in November surpassing Solana, making it one of the hottest wealth tracks in the blockchain field. However, despite the significant achievements in capital inflow and ecosystem growth, its on-chain transaction volume has yet to surpass Solana, indicating that while expanding rapidly, Base still faces the dual challenges of sustained growth and market competition.
Taking market value as an example, the market capitalization of Clanker's CLANKER token has reached 70 million dollars, reflecting the huge appeal of the Base ecosystem and the current craze. Unlike traditional VC cryptocurrency approaches, the rise of Meme tokens drives on-chain data and user trading behavior to exchange listings, forming a new ecological model. Users accumulate chips on-chain and then utilize exchange liquidity to exit; this approach pushes CEX (centralized exchanges) to the corners of the market, which I believe is a strong indication of the early stage of a real bull market, similar to the on-chain liquidity phenomenon that exploded during the DeFi Summer of 2020. This innovative mechanism showcases the vitality of the Base ecosystem while exposing the challenges it still faces in market competition.
Comparison of on-chain data between Base and Solana on Artemis
The relationship between public chains and ecological projects is akin to a couple dancing together, inseparable and mutually dependent. As a public chain, whether Base can leverage the empowerment of AI Agents and Meme culture to break through the TVL barrier of 4 billion dollars and become a market leader remains an unresolved challenge. Meanwhile, ecological projects like Clanker and Virtual Protocol must also find fertile ground for growth within the Base ecosystem and rise with market enthusiasm, which deserves attention. Clanker and Virtual Protocol are representative projects in this wave of Base enthusiasm, the former as a 'machine for creating popular Memes' and the latter spanning from GameFi to AI infrastructure to consumer platforms. Although they have different development paths, they have both seized market opportunities and become focal points. Through the rise of these projects, we see the appeal of the Base ecosystem and the current market craze, showcasing the deep-seated interests and tacit agreements between public chains and projects, though the landscape may seem boundless, the reality is still filled with commercial and market-driven interests.
Clanker: The 'Hit Meme' manufacturing machine of the Base ecosystem
Clanker, like a crazy invention that has crossed over from (Rick and Morty), has become a reality in the laboratory of the Base public chain—it is an AI Agent full of quirky ideas, focused on turning ephemeral ideas into real Meme tokens using social media and smart contracts. Imagine casually waving like Rick, and @clanker directly deploys an ERC-20 token on Farcaster, complete with liquidity pool and smart lock features—this is not only a magic of technology but also a carnival of decentralized narratives. Clanker simplifies the operation process, relying on the Clanker.sol contract to realize the minting of ERC-20 tokens, initialization of Uniswap V3 pools, liquidity injection, and locking, allowing users to easily complete token deployment and distribution with a simple request on Farcaster, having already created multiple Meme tokens with a market value exceeding ten million dollars. It breaks down technical barriers, allowing everyone the opportunity to become a creator of the Meme economy while creating real returns 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 not only be funny or sentimental but also carry functionalities supporting research funding, sharing experimental results, or open-source tools. Just like Rick's casual inventions solve cosmic problems, Clanker's tokens may become experimental tools for the scientific community, providing new funding models for scientists while reshaping the academic trust system with on-chain transparency. This combination of DeSci and Meme is not only refreshing but also opens up an unexpected future for blockchain applications.
Clanker is such a crazy and creative laboratory, constantly expanding the boundaries of Web3 amidst laughter and innovation. Who knows, will the next industry to have its rules rewritten by it be science?
Market capitalization performance of the three major tokens CLANKER, LUM, ANON
The issuance stories of the three major tokens CLANKER, LUM, and ANON, especially the combination of ANON with the anonymous posting tool anoncast, even attracted the attention of Ethereum founder Vitalik. It is also worth noting that the birth of AI Meme Luminous ($LUM) stemmed from a spark of inspiration in the Farcaster community, where a user proposed the bold idea of creating a token symbolizing the collaboration between humans and AI: intertwining blue and gold light flows represent 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, with the processes of token minting, Uniswap V3 pool initialization, liquidity injection and locking, and the design of a 40% transaction fee rebate mechanism all completed automatically. $LUM not only lowers technical barriers with its simplified operation process but also rapidly attracts community attention through the narrative theme of 'human and AI collaboration' and artistic visual design, becoming a cultural symbol within the Base ecosystem. Leveraging its strong community dissemination power, $LUM has seen its market capitalization surpass 30 million dollars from inspiration.
On one hand, Clanker, as an innovative platform, significantly lowers the technical threshold by simplifying user operation processes (such as directly generating tokens 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, spectators cannot help but wonder whether the Clanker model can be sustained? As a 'cryptocurrency' project, its current model focuses on hype and dissemination, lacking actual 'use' scenarios. The author would like to invoke the thoughts of cultural anthropologists, stating that in reality, a culture is neither a purely physical process nor a purely idealistic construct. It is a living entity rooted in the soil of life, encompassing not only the simple instinctive lives of shepherds, fishermen, and farmers but also the highest achievements of artists and philosophers; just as individuals tightly combine 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 entrepreneurship stories in the cryptocurrency space
Although part of the Base ecosystem, Virtual has chosen a completely different path: driven by products, emphasizing the connection between AI and Web2 users, gradually building a set of high-frequency 'use' tool systems. Former Google 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 in three years, achieving a miracle of market capitalization growth from 10 million dollars to 1 billion dollars.
PathDAO's early GitHub and the Twitter of the ecosystem leader
Virtual includes a diverse product line, which includes modules such as MyShell's Alpp Store. Although the market value and call volume of individual products do not match Clanker's cryptocurrency Meme, they open up space in the Web2 tool application scenario. $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 channel for entering this ecosystem and purchasing and investing in AI agents. The VIRTUAL token plays a key role in the entire system, driving economic activities within the platform and ensuring decentralization and fair distribution. Most agents on the platform represent specific personalities or roles, such as virtual life forms, frogs, memes, Donald Trump, Taylor Swift, etc., while developers are also creating functional agents to enhance user interaction with AI virtual life forms and ensure they seamlessly integrate into the virtual world. These agents can not only generate real income but also achieve long-term growth and shared ownership through tokenization mechanisms. Participants can share the potential returns brought by agents by holding $VIRTUAL tokens and purchasing $LUNA tokens.
However, Virtual is questioned by Degen regarding whether its 'usability' makes tool-type products 'counterproductive'? As a cryptocurrency ecosystem project, its core is 'use', not 'speculation', but does this mean it loses its dissemination value?
Clanker: The 'rebel' of Liangshan
Clanker is more like Song Jiang when forced to lead the Liangshan uprising, using its own organizational power and dissemination effect to allow a group of rough heroes to gain a place in a chaotic world. Clanker attracts a large number of cryptocurrency users' attention by creating popular Meme tokens, generating a market frenzy, much like Liangshan's slogan of 'acting on behalf of heaven', spreading the ideology of the uprising across the world.
But the issue lies in the fact that Liangshan's slogan ultimately is just a slogan, lacking long-term support. Many tokens issued by Clanker, although high in market value, remain at the conceptual level without solid usage scenarios. This model is more like Liangshan's desperate attempts to survive in chaotic times, constantly expanding its influence through 'speculation', but may not be able to sustain it in the long run.
Virtual: The 'submission faction' of Liangshan
In contrast, Virtual's path resembles the submission faction within Liangshan. Their core demand is not resistance but rather to ensure that their brothers have food and drink, pursuing stability and order. Virtual focuses on refining product functionality, empowering users through AI tools, and bridging Web2 and Web3, similar to Liangshan's efforts to maintain its 'legitimate status' after accepting the imperial court's submission.
Virtual emphasizes 'use', not 'speculation'. Although its tool-type products are frequently called upon, they lack the dissemination effect of cryptocurrencies, much like Liangshan after submission, which solved short-term livelihood issues but lost the initial spirit of resistance. This model may have more stability in the short term, but whether it can continue 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 resistance, while the ultimate submission is a choice to find a realistic home for his brothers. This transformation showcases the conflict between ideals and reality—ideals are resistance, while reality is compromise.
Similarly, the divergence between Clanker and Virtual reflects another contradiction within the cryptocurrency ecosystem, the opposition between 'speculation' and 'use', which actually reflects a deeper issue of cryptocurrencies: as BTC and ETH gradually gain mainstream acceptance and enter the era of war reserves and compliance, do we need more product innovation or stronger ideological dissemination? Just as Song Jiang sighed while overlooking the army camp from the mountain: 'Since we are bandits, how could we not submit to the court? If we rebel, it is only to seek a stable life, how can we always be rebels?' This statement aptly expresses the journey from resistance to real compromise and provides a mirror for us to contemplate the future of cryptocurrencies.
