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Memes are old, but they entered a new paradigm with crypto, and now, with the increased adoption of AI. Its scale and popularity are most apparent on Solana (SOL), which is the only layer-1 capable of enabling and sustaining the memecoin supercycle.
ICYMI, crypto has a golden rule: never mid-curve it. Solana aced this. It excelled at both ends of the bell curve, with gigabrain technical innovations on the right and hyper-degen memes on the left.
Now that Goatseaus Maximus (GOAT)—a Solana-based meme—produced the first AI crypto millionaire, we can put the ‘who’ll take memecoins mainstream’ debate to rest. The winner has emerged. In fact, it has been for some time. The GOATs and FART COINs are just new high points, opening new paths forward alongside OG Solana memes.
None other than Solana
Reddit user Watermelon_nuts recounts paying $600 in gas fees to trade memecoins during the last bull cycle on Ethereum (ETH). The fees situation was so bad, that all some users ‘remember is the gas fees’ while others highlight the pain of finding a ‘diamond in the rough.’
Solana fixed that. Given its low fees (typically <$1 per TX), the barriers to trading memecoins have been much, much lower on this platform, even at peak frenzy. This allowed small accounts to play memecoins—even with sub-$100 balances—and democratized the space. Inclusion at its best.
Then there’s speed. Memecoin traders love the 1-sec chart. That’s how fast this space moves, as does Solana. Hundreds of tokens launch every minute on platforms like Pump.Fun, for better and worse. This same amount of time can make or break a trader’s fortune.
Solana’s Proof-of-History (PoH) consensus, among other scalability-oriented features, allows it to process parallel TXs, unlike L1s using mempools. This is a key enabler for high-frequency memecoin trading. Opportunities don’t pass while waiting for confirmation here.
If Solana has become the go-to L1 for memecoins while processing over 65K transactions per second, imagine where it’ll be when the Firedancer upgrade boosts its scalability 10x.
Per VanEck (yes, even institutions are bullish on Solana memes), SOL could hit a $330 target and capture at least 50% of ETH’s market cap. Mainly thanks to memecoins driving adoption and L1 profitability on Solana, while Ethereum’s revenues are down 99% since March 2024.
The memetic top
Solana-powered memecoins surged over 30% till Q3 2024. While Dogecoin (DOGE) and Pepe (PEPE), top meme cults on the ETH side, dropped by 5%.
This growth cycle drove Solana’s Total Value Locked (TVL) to a two-year high of over $6 billion. DEX activity—primarily involving memecoins—also increased 43% to cross $11 billion, surpassing Ethereum and other L1s.
Among the OGs, BONK, POPCAT, and WIF are great examples of Solana memes that gained unprecedented traction. But most importantly, they took the game beyond mere speculation.
BONK captured the chain’s spirit and established itself as the ‘social layer’ of Solana. POPCAT’s community takeover proved the cultural impact of memecoins, plus their potential to boost resilience. And that there’s ‘VC wif hat’ merch testifies to $WIF’s success.
With the likes of $GOAT scaling 12,000% in the first 24 hours, Solana’s memetic ecosystem is now moving one level higher. Though a typo put the integrity of Token Terminal’s AI narrative into question—and rightly so—initiating the AI x Crypto-Meme meta was a historical development in itself.
Like it or not, both AI and crypto-memes are rapidly spreading mindviruses. Together, they dominate over 66% of the crypto mindshare. This is the first time something like this happened, but it surely won’t be the last.
AI and memes are a match made in heaven. Both thrive on speed and the expanse of their distribution. Clearly, Solana is the only platform where this intersection is taking shape. Others might follow, but nothing beats the first unless it’s Solana all over again.
Second to the first
No doubt Ethereum got major crypto memes first. Yet the holistic—almost exponential—boom of the memecoin ecosystem happened about 6-7 years later on Solana.
Co-dependence and mutual prosperity are the biggest reasons for this. Besides, of course, the inherent fun, daring, and explorative nature of the Solana community.
The Solana blockchain and its memetic ecosystem have grown hand-in-hand, as mentioned above. In October 2024 alone, for example, Solana’s TVL grew 13% thanks to memecoin trading. Whereas Ethereum, for example, stagnated.
Both big-brain factions and degen communities embrace Solana’s meme culture. Neither is being all highbrow and ‘oh! so stupid’ about it. Rather than spewing FUD and fussing over the banality of left-curve growth, they take what works and run to the top with it.
Solana’s innovation-engagement balance is exemplary on this note. It’s a technically robust yet fun space to be in—the key to mass adoption.
Hopefully, other chains will truly realize and embrace the power of memecoins so crypto can grow as a whole. Otherwise, Solana will run alone—it’s anyway a league ahead.
