Buterin noted that a crypto project needs to “have some kind of public-good goal” rather than enriching celebrities.
Buterin also noted that while making profits is important, this should be aligned with notable causes. Many of the
celebrity-driven tokens which appear on the market are done so with pure financial returns at the fore and ahead of
and meaningful objectives. These comments come after a wave of memecoins promoted by celebrities have flooded
the market, and he argues they lack a clear purpose or vision for the future.
The recent launch of the popular memecoin "$MOTHER" on Solana by Iggy Azalea, an Australian rapper and
OnlyFans star, has caused controversy. It has a market capitalisation of around $142 million and Azalea claims
that her project will donate to curing koalas from chlamydia. This is a major disease which threatens the population
of the endangered animal. She claimed to only hold 3% of the token's entire supply, however the top traders tab on
dexscreener show multiple wallets profiting more than $1m collectively which has raised concerns over the legitimacy
of the project.
Buterin went on to contrast the celebrity meme coin trend with Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis, who created "Stoner
Cats" which went on to fund an actual animated show. These sort of public projects are what Buterin is aiming for
from the celebrity memecoin trend taking place in Web3. He also went on to highlight racist concerns with some of
the Solana meme coins, and also noted the general trend of these coins contributing little beyond price speculation.
Buterin noted: “Even long-time Ethereum philosopher Polynya is very, very unhappy.”
Finally, Buterin stressed that these tokens need longevity while he also suggested that projects should be designed
to last at least 10 years to ensure they provide lasting value and are not quickly forgotten. The ones which do fade
and vanish quickly are often the ones which see the creator and / or founder profit the most.
Iggy Azelea did hit back, posting on 'X' to show her opinion of the thoughts of the Ethereum co-founder. Many of
her fans also stood up for the Australian, with some calling out Buterin on "where do Ethereum GAS fees go?"
However the biggest weapon on her side was when she hosted a 'Spaces' on 'X' where the rapper demonstrated
her knowledge of Web3 and many were taken aback by just how informed she was. This helped to grow her
community from the token hit $100m and beyond. The long-term future of the project remains unclear, but it
will be interesting to see if this is just another fad in the memecoin sector, of if this will indeed provide long-term
community benefits.
Spoil note*
Vitalik Buterin has earned more than 220 ETH by selling off memecoins such as CULT, MOPS, and SHIK
