Two hundredfold coins compete for the Base ecosystem AI throne. Who will be the ultimate winner, Virtual or Clanker?

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 a TVL (Total Value Locked) surpassing $3.85 billion, surpassing Arbitrum and Optimism, and 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 has experienced explosive growth in 2024, with inflows in November exceeding those of Solana, making it one of the hottest wealth tracks in the blockchain field. However, despite Base's significant achievements in capital inflow and ecosystem growth, its on-chain transaction volume has not yet surpassed 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, reflecting the immense appeal of the Base ecosystem and the current craze. Unlike traditional VC coin strategies, the rise of Meme tokens has driven on-chain data and user trading behaviors back to exchange listings, forming a new ecological model. Users accumulate chips on-chain and then utilize exchange liquidity to exit, pushing CEX (Centralized Exchanges) to the corners of the market. This is also a strong indication, in my opinion, of the true beginning of a bull market, similar to the on-chain liquidity phenomenon that erupted during the DeFi Summer of 2020. This innovative mechanism showcases the vitality of the Base ecosystem while also 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 ecological projects is like a couple dancing together, inseparable and mutually supportive. As a public chain, whether Base can leverage AI Agents and Meme culture to break through the $4 billion TVL barrier and become a market leader remains an unresolved challenge. At the same time, whether ecological projects like Clanker and Virtual Protocol can find fertile ground for growth within the Base ecosystem and rise with market enthusiasm is also worth watching. Clanker and Virtual Protocol are representative projects in this round of Base's craze; the former is a "machine for creating popular Memes," while the latter spans 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 appeal of the Base ecosystem and the current market craze, showcasing the deep entanglement of interests and tacit understanding between public chains and projects. Although the scenery is boundless, it is still filled with the driving forces of business and market 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 a reality in the laboratory of the Base public chain—an AI Agent full of quirky ideas, focused on turning ethereal concepts into real-world Meme tokens using social media and smart contracts. Imagine, like Rick, casually waving your hand, @clanker directly deploying an ERC-20 token on Farcaster, complete with liquidity pools and smart locking features—this is not just a technological magic trick, but a carnival of decentralized narratives. Clanker simplifies the operational process, relying on the Clanker.sol contract to achieve the minting of ERC-20 tokens, initialization of Uniswap V3 pools, 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 multiple Meme tokens with market capitalizations exceeding ten million dollars. It breaks down technical barriers, giving everyone the opportunity to become creators in the Meme economy, while also generating real income for the community through a 40% fee-sharing mechanism.

Clanker technical implementation flowchart

However, this carnival is not just for entertainment. Clanker is exploring how to integrate the concept of DeSci (Decentralized Science) into its system. For example, future tokens may no longer just be humorous or sentimental but could carry functions such as research funding, sharing experimental results, or supporting open-source tools. Just like Rick invents solutions to cosmic problems, Clanker's tokens might 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, the next industry it rewrites the rules for might just be science?

Market performance of CLANKER, LUM, and ANON tokens

The issuance stories of the three major tokens CLANKER, LUM, and ANON, especially the combination of ANON with the anonymous posting tool anoncast, have even attracted the attention of Ethereum founder Vitalik. It is also worth noting that the birth of AI Meme Luminous ($LUM) originated from a spark of inspiration in 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 and gold light flows 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, with the entire process of token minting, Uniswap V3 pool initialization, liquidity injection and locking, and the design of a 40% transaction fee rebate mechanism being automated. $LUM not only lowers technical barriers with its simplified operational process but also quickly attracts community attention through its narrative theme of "human and AI collaboration" and artistic visual design, becoming a cultural symbol within the Base ecosystem. Leveraging strong community dissemination, $LUM has surpassed a market capitalization of $30 million from inspiration to realization.

On one hand, Clanker, as an innovative platform, greatly reduces technical barriers by simplifying user operations (such as generating tokens directly through @clanker) and issuing tokens in collaboration with AI, allowing anyone to participate in the creation and dissemination of Meme tokens. On the other hand, observers cannot help but question whether the Clanker model can be sustained. As a "coin circle" project, its current model focuses on speculation and dissemination, lacking actual "use" scenarios. I would like to invoke the thoughts of cultural anthropologists, suggesting 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, 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: An Inspirational Startup Story in the Crypto Space

Although part of the Base ecosystem, Virtual has chosen a completely different path: product-driven at its core, emphasizing the connection between AI and Web2 users, gradually building a high-frequency "use" tool system. The perspectives of former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and A16Z co-founder Marc Andreessen highlight the unique advantages of the Virtual team in high-frequency trial and error. From PathDAO to Virtual Protocol, the team has spent three years crossing from GameFi, AI infrastructure, to consumer DApps, achieving a miracle of growth from a market cap of $10 million to $1 billion.

Early GitHub of PathDAO and Twitter of the ecosystem leader

Virtual encompasses a diverse product line, including modules like MyShell's App Store. Although the market cap and usage of individual products do not match Clanker's coin circle Meme, it has opened up space in the Web2 tool scenario. $VIRTUAL is the native token of the Virtual 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 with other tokens, making $VIRTUAL the only channel to enter this ecosystem and purchase and invest 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 characters, such as virtual beings, frogs, emojis, Donald Trump, Taylor Swift, etc. Meanwhile, developers are also creating functional agents to enhance user interaction with AI virtual beings and ensure they can seamlessly integrate into the virtual world. These agents not only generate real income but also achieve long-term growth and shared ownership through a tokenization mechanism, allowing participants to share the potential returns brought by agents by holding $VIRTUAL tokens and purchasing $LUNA tokens.

However, Virtual has faced skepticism from Degen regarding whether its "usability" makes tool-type products "misplaced." 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, who has just been forced to rebel at Water Margin, using its organizational power and dissemination effect to allow a group of grassroots heroes to carve out a place for themselves in chaotic times. Clanker attracts a large number of crypto users' attention by creating hot Meme tokens, generating a fervent market atmosphere, much like Liangshan's slogan of "acting on behalf of heaven," spreading the ideology of rebellion throughout the world.

But the problem is that Liangshan's banner ultimately becomes just a slogan, lacking lasting support. Many tokens issued by Clanker, although high in market value, remain at the conceptual level without solid use cases. This model resembles Liangshan's desperate attempts to survive in chaotic times, constantly expanding influence through "speculation," but may not be able to sustain itself in the long run.

Virtual: The "Pacification Faction" of Liangshan

In contrast, Virtual's path resembles the pacification faction within Water Margin. Their core demand is not rebellion but 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 the gap between Web2 and Web3, much like Liangshan striving to maintain its "legitimate status" after accepting the imperial court's pacification.

Virtual emphasizes "use," not "speculation." Although its tool-type products are frequently utilized, they lack the dissemination effect of cryptocurrencies, akin to Liangshan after pacification, which, while solving short-term livelihood issues, loses its original spirit of rebellion. This model may be more stable in the short term, but whether it can continue the ideological value of cryptocurrencies remains uncertain.

Ideological Rebellion vs. Compromise for Livelihood

The core contradiction of the Liangshan rebellion lies in the struggle between the ideology of rebellion and the reality of survival. Song Jiang's "acting on behalf of heaven" represents the spirit of resistance, while the eventual pacification is a choice to find a realistic home for his brothers. This transformation showcases the conflict between ideals and reality—ideals are rebellion, 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 in cryptocurrency: 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 camp from the mountain: "Since we are bandits, how can we not return to the court? If we rebel, it is only to seek a stable life; how can we remain rebels forever?" This statement aptly expresses the journey from rebellion to realistic compromise and provides a mirror for us to contemplate the future of cryptocurrencies.