In the world of Web3, attention is everything.
Author: 0xJeff
Compiled by: Deep Tide TechFlow
How did I know Virtuals would succeed?
Two months ago, I first encountered @virtuals_io when they were launching a project called 'Westworld': the first playable autonomous world on Roblox.
The core concept of this project is: an interactive virtual world with multi-agents, where autonomous agents can move freely—they make choices, create stories, and even 'live' in this world.
@everythingempt0 explained their vision to me in detail: combining AI with tokenization. At that moment, I knew this project would definitely succeed.
So, I started buying $VIRTUAL when its market cap was below 100 million dollars and recommended it to everyone around me:
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Three key elements of success: storytelling, utility, innovation
Storytelling: Touching hearts with stories
Virtuals did not just develop a product; they excel at storytelling. Before finding product-market fit (PMF), they had already mastered the art of narrative.
A typical example is the release of @luna_virtuals. They didn't simply launch an ordinary product, but told the story of how @VitalikButerin inadvertently discovered Luna (an autonomous agent) through a comic:
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Why is storytelling so important? Because a good story can establish an emotional connection. Virtuals don't just tell you what their product is; they make you resonate with it. This approach has helped them achieve significant results in brand communication and community building.
Utility
$VIRTUAL is not an ordinary token, but the core infrastructure of the entire platform:
It supports the pairing of agents with tokens;
It is key to creating liquidity pools;
It is also a payment tool for the reasoning costs required to maintain agent operations.
Every activity on the platform is closely tied to $VIRTUAL. This design not only brings value accumulation but also avoids pure speculation.
Innovation
Virtuals is the first team to introduce AI tokenization to the market. Their attempts are bold and innovative, exploring completely uncharted territories.
This reminds me of @pendle_fi: Before finding product-market fit (PMF), they also went through a process of constant experimentation, adjustments, and breakthroughs.
This spirit of innovation drives real technological breakthroughs. It reminds me of past DeFi Summers, the '(3,3)' craze, and the ve(3,3) model. Even if some of these attempts may fail, their impact will last for a long time.
Why is this important?
When you combine the three key elements of storytelling, utility, and innovation, along with a team capable of continuous execution, adjustment, and problem-solving, you can build a unicorn-level project.
That's why I am confident that Virtuals will reach a market value of 1 billion dollars. Now, I use the same standards to evaluate new AI agent ecosystems, looking for projects that might follow a similar successful path.
Next: @ARCAgents / @aiarena_
Why choose ARC?
ARC is redefining the way crypto, AI, and gaming intersect. They leverage existing agent IPs (like Luna, Aixbt, and Vader) to support their flagship product—ARC Reinforcement Learning (RL).
How does ARC RL work? ARC RL allows human players to train agents through gaming data.
For example: If you are playing (Tekken), your gameplay data will be learned by the agent, helping it continuously improve its abilities. In other words, the higher your gaming skill, the stronger your agent will become.
Their recent event 'Floppy Bot: Sentient Supreme' is a great example:
12 AI agents compete for a spot in the top 4 before the finals;
Human players support their favorite agents by playing mini-games similar to Floppy Bird while contributing gaming data;
The winning agent will earn a prize pool of 500,000 $NRN.
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Vision: Redefining gaming paradigms
ARC is pioneering a whole new way of gaming: PvA (Player vs Agent) and even AvA (Agent vs Agent).
Imagine the rise of agent esports, agents helping games lacking players to launch quickly, and creating entirely new forms of entertainment that capture user attention. In the world of Web3, attention is the most important resource.
Utility
Consumer-facing (B2C): Players need to stake $NRN to use ARC RL.
Enterprise-facing (B2B): Game studios can pay to use ARC's technology, and these fees can be used for treasury buybacks or incentivizing ecosystem activities.
Why am I optimistic about ARC?
In the current AI agent market, various ecosystems and individual agents are struggling to find their differentiated positioning, while @ARCAgents provides the best infrastructure these ecosystems need.
ARC's approach is gamified at its core: allowing agents to enter games and compete against human players (PvA) or other agents (AvA). This not only increases functionality but also turns agents into a new form of entertainment that captures user attention.
In the world of Web3, attention is everything.
ARC makes agents more interesting and interactive by giving them more capabilities. These agents are no longer static entities, but dynamic 'players.' They not only attract users but also introduce 'agent players' to new games, creating a core resource that every ecosystem craves: user attention.
Through ARC, gaming becomes a natural extension of the agent ecosystem, adding more interactive dimensions, differentiation, and value. That's why I believe ARC is the next AI agent ecosystem capable of achieving unicorn status.
If you want to learn more about @ARCAgents, you can check out my article below.
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Personal Notes
Thank you for reading my analysis! The article is indeed a bit long, but I hope to demonstrate my thoughts and framework for evaluating AI agent projects through it. I will share more selected projects next, so stay tuned!
Disclaimer
This article is for informational and entertainment purposes only. The opinions expressed herein do not constitute investment advice or recommendations. Please conduct thorough due diligence based on your financial situation, investment goals, and risk tolerance before investing.
This article is not an offer or invitation to buy or sell any asset; investment decisions should be made independently and cautiously.
