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- Solana-based memecoins inspired by Studio Ghibli are gaining traction, fueled by the viral popularity of AI-generated Ghibli-style art.
- The leading token, Ghiblification (GHIBLI), skyrocketed 39,010% in 19 hours, reaching a $20.8 million valuation.
- Despite excitement, past trends like CHILLGUY show memecoins tied to viral moments often crash hard; traders should remain cautious.
A new wave of Ghibli-inspired memecoins on Solana is taking the crypto world by storm, riding on the viral success of AI-generated art that has flooded social media over the past 24 hours.
On March 25, OpenAI launched image generation for its ChatGPT-4o model that allows users to create stunning visuals in the signature style of Studio Ghibli, a celebrated animation studio and producer of classic masterpieces like Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro. The launch triggered a spread of Ghibli-styled images on social media, sparking new interest in themed tokens in the cryptocurrency market.
Fuel was added to the fire when high-profile individuals like OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and entrepreneur Elon Musk shared their own AI-generated portraits. Neither of the two referenced any Ghibli-related memecoins directly, but the past history of Musk inadvertently promoting coins like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu left the market very sensitive to his social media activities.
Ghibli Memecoins Gain Momentum as GHIBLI Reaches $20.8M
Although there was no clear endorsement, the highest Ghibli-themed token, Ghiblification (GHIBLI), rose to a market cap of $20.8 million within 19 hours since it was released, reports DEX Screener statistics. The token’s price now is $0.02131, with an impressive 39,010% rise since it was developed.
At least 20 additional Ghibli-related memecoins have popped up in the last day, solidifying the trend as a possible comeback for the memecoin market. The memecoin market has fallen 57% in overall value since peaking on Dec. 8 after Bitcoin initially surpassed the historic $100,000 milestone
Crypto trader Sachs took to X (formerly Twitter) on March 26, expressing his hopes for GHIBLI’s success:
“Praying this runs to $100M to bring some hope into these markets. Severely needed.”
The surge in Ghibli tokens is just a part of a bigger trend in cultural patterns shaping the memecoin market. The “Just a chill guy” meme went viral last November, propelling the CHILLGUY token to a $643 million market cap within just a fortnight of its release.
But the hype faded in the end. The present value of Just a Chill Guy today is $0.031857 USD with a 24-hour trading volume of $17,471,986 USD. Just a chill guy is down 4.46% in the past 24 hours. And CHILLGUY is down 95% from the all-time high based on CoinMarketCap data.
Although the Ghibli craze has kindled renewed interest in the market, we know from experience that memecoins riding on fleeting social trends are fraught with tremendous risk. Like any speculative asset class, the traders need to be careful; what rises quickly may fall even quicker.
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