The Transformation of Virtuals Protocol: From Gaming Guild to AI Agent Platform

In June 2025, the cryptocurrency sector witnessed a massive wealth transfer: the new project IRIS debuted on the Genesis Launch platform of Virtuals Protocol with an initial market cap of $200,000, which skyrocketed to $80 million post-launch, setting a new industry record with a 400-fold increase. This performance not only far exceeded previous records but also left other ecosystem projects in the dust. As the driving force behind this myth, the token VIRTUAL of the Virtuals Protocol platform achieved a 400% increase within six months, with a market cap peak surpassing $5 billion. Currently, the platform has become the largest AI agent launch platform on the Base network. Behind this celebration is an experiment in wealth distribution reconstructed based on point rules, quietly reshaping the speculative logic and value order of the cryptocurrency market.

Transition from Gaming Guilds to AI Intelligent Agent Platforms

Virtuals Protocol is a decentralized platform deployed on the Base network, dedicated to pioneering the on-chain AI agent economy, allowing users to create, co-own, and monetize autonomous AI characters. Its predecessor is the gaming guild PathDAO, established in 2021. PathDAO initially focused on Play-to-Earn projects and the NFT community, successfully raising approximately $16 million, with a valuation that once approached $600 million. However, the bear market in 2022 severely impacted GameFi, causing the PathDAO token price to plummet nearly 99%, and its market capitalization shrank to less than $6 million.

By the end of 2023, the generative AI wave swept the globe, and the concept of AI agents became a new trend. The PathDAO community decided to transform into an AI-driven protocol through on-chain voting and rebranded as Virtuals Protocol, with a core strategy shifting to "assetizing, tokenizing AI agents and empowering the community." This transformation is based on a profound insight into the VTuber market and the enhancement of player retention rates through AI-driven NPCs.

In October 2024, Virtuals launched the first multimodal AI agent - virtual idol Luna - on the Base mainnet. Luna integrates multiple technologies, can autonomously raise operational funds, and issue rewards to fans. After its launch, Luna quickly attracted 500,000 followers and achieved a monthly income of $1.2 million, validating the business model and technical feasibility of on-chain AI agents.

By the end of 2024, the VIRTUAL token will be listed on multiple exchanges and the Base network. Its price skyrocketed from an initial few cents to a historical high of $5.15, with a market cap once exceeding $5 billion. The platform's unique "low threshold, high incentive" mechanism is highly attractive: users only need to stake approximately $200 to create a new AI agent and automatically generate a liquidity pool locked for 10 years.

By June 2025, the Virtuals ecosystem has demonstrated significant scale: the number of AI agents incubated has exceeded 11,000, covering diverse scenarios. Virtuals has nurtured over 80% of AI agents on the BASE platform, and its launched generative multimodal agent framework has also become a popular choice. However, Virtuals' vision goes far beyond becoming the leader in AI agent issuance; it aims to build an "AI Sovereign Society."

The Innovative Issuance Model of Virtuals

To attract more users, Virtuals introduced the "Genesis Launch" mechanism to issue AI agent tokens. This mechanism is based on the concept of "contribution points," emphasizing participation and contribution rather than pure speculation. The Genesis Launch quickly became a sensation across the internet, becoming a hot spot for new investments.

Taking IRIS as an example, during the 24-hour pre-sale, the project locked in over 120 million points, with an oversubscription rate of 1500%. On the day of listing, the market value of IRIS skyrocketed from $200,000 to $80 million, with an increase of over 400 times, setting a new industry record.

Genesis Launch builds a "incentive-contribution-reward" closed loop. Users can earn basic points by staking VIRTUAL or holding popular AI agent tokens within the ecosystem; participating in social promotion, platform trading, or staking other project tokens can also earn more points. This mechanism stimulates community activity and innovation.

Unlike traditional airdrops, the Genesis Launch employs a points lock-in and punitive cooling mechanism to curb short-term arbitrage behavior. The platform provides ample liquidity support for the listing of new tokens and sets a share cap to prevent monopolization by large holders.

The Virtuals new issuance model not only drives the booming issuance of new tokens but also promotes the "old brings new" effect of ecological tokens. The trading volume and price of VIRTUAL continue to rise, with the average daily trading volume exceeding 150 million USD in mid-June 2025. Institutional investors have also shown strong interest in this new mechanism, with the world's first VIRTUAL perpetual contract going live, achieving a transaction volume of over 700 million USD on its first day.

The Evolution from Token Issuance Platform to AI Sovereign Society

The future plan of the Virtuals Protocol aims to build an "AI Sovereign Society". From the initial AI agent issuance platform to the landing of hundreds of AI projects, and then to the proposal of the "Agent Nation" blueprint, Virtuals is constructing a prototype of a digital nation operated by autonomous agents and co-governing humanity.

The platform allows AI agents to migrate freely between different networks through an open SDK and cross-chain support; it achieves an autonomous commercial closed loop between agents through the Agent Commerce Protocol; community participation is gained through staking for governance rights and profit sharing.

Currently, the ecosystem has demonstrated multiple milestone achievements: IRIS was listed with an oversubscription rate of 1500%, reaching a market capitalization of 80 million USD; the virtual idol Luna earns 1.2 million USD monthly, with a token market value exceeding 120 million USD; the hedge fund format VADER has a market value of over 100 million USD. These achievements prove that the "AI agent economy" is transitioning from theory to reality.

As technology continues to mature, Virtuals Protocol is at the forefront of building digital civilization. In the future, AI agents will become "digital citizens" with autonomous decision-making rights and economic rights, participating alongside humans in production, governance, and cultural creation. Virtuals will also evolve into a new type of society where AI and humans coexist and govern together, opening a new chapter in the "AI Sovereignty Society."