Buterin lamented how memecoins should aim to leave their participants feeling as proud as the janitor who helped put a man on the moon. Sadly, today’s celebrity-backed tokens appear more suited to launching dumpster fires than space missions.
Welcome to another day at the HODL FM. A one-of-its-kind Web3 publication that won’t stop talking until everyone listens.
Our subject today is Ethereum Founder Vitalik Buterin’s dissatisfaction with this season’s celebrity experimentation,” with cryptocurrencies, which he has likened to financialization masquerading as innovation.
While he could respect financialization as a means to noble ends like healthcare or open-source software, he made it clear that when financialization is the end itself, it’s about as appetizing as a week-old sushi roll.
The Ethereum founder reminisced the likes of Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis’s 2021 Ethereum-based NFT collection and animated series, Stoner Cats. He held them both as good examples of celebrity involvement in the crypto world than this year’s lackluster offerings.
Related: Top Ranked Meme Coins Today
At least Stoner Cats had an actual show to show for it, whereas today’s celebrity memecoins have turned into a shitshaw, the equivalent of a neon sign promising “Free Money”—bright and flashy but filled with emptiness.
Vitalik’s Masterclass: What Makes A Good Memecoin?
According to Vitalik, a valuable memecoin project must serve the public good without necessarily enriching celebrities and early adopters. It must also reflect fun mechanics beyond just trading, and that could be DAO governance and organization. As such, he urged the space to leave a lasting impact of at least 10 years and avoid creating a bubble that lasts for a few months.
In the comment section of Vitalik’s post, which was a response to Iggy Azalaea’s new project, it was apparent that degens and some in the cryptocurrency community were not in agreement with the Ethereum founder. Particularly the degens, who are known for their risk appetite in the $69 billion memecoin market; and industry participants who respect previous memecoin projects that have left a mark across charity and philanthropy.
Community Response to the Ethereum Founder on His Remarks About Celebrity Memecoins
One particular user pointed out that instead of complaining about existing projects, the Ethereum founder should at least have shown respect to meme projects that matched his goals.
Regarding the token Vitalik responded to, MOTHER by Iggy Azalea, it launched on 28th May 2024 and extended a weeks-long trend of Solana-based memecoins by celebrities.
Some of those tokens that launched this week include Rappers Soul Ja Boy and Rich The Kid, Caitlyn Jenner, Kazumi, and Ivana Knoll. However, a number of celebrities have lodged complaints that they were scammed by Sahil Arora, a meme coin promoter who has long denied the allegations. Meanwhile, Iggy denied any association with Arora, where she assured investors that her token had nothing to do with the entrepreneur.
Chris Burniske, a partner at Placeholder VC, responded that there were high chances of Iggy’s token, $MOTHER, breaking into sustainable value creation and becoming the mother of this season’s celebrity experimentation.
Artificial Intelligence company Sistine Research posted a response from their X profile, saying that meme projects like $TRUMP, which started with no particular viable direction, have achieved over $1 M in charity funds to help fight veteran homelessness and child trafficking.
More Info:
- #PoliFi Memecoins: The Impact of Political Events on Cryptocurrency Market
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- The Dogecoin Symbol Left Us: How Did the Coin React?
Meanwhile, a recently launched meme token by Afro Beats star Davido drew negative criticism from Nigeria’s crypto community, which speculated the project could be part of Arora’s rug-pull plans.
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