Author: David C, Bankless; Compiled by: Five Baht, Golden Finance

Perhaps not surprisingly, when we look back on the year, there is one token category that outperformed all others Category - memecoins.

Initially, memecoins took off in 2024 due to growing criticism and frustration with token offerings entering the market at high fully diluted valuations. Many traders are leaning toward memecoins due to their simpler narrative, (usually) reduced insider allocations, and low-cost trading fees, making them a core pillar of the cryptocurrency’s growth in 2024.

Let’s take a look at how memecoins have maintained this momentum, explore the role of Solana and Pump.fun in accelerating their growth, discuss their evolution and impact on the token’s value, and analyze them Implications for artificial intelligence agents in this evolving environment.

In addition to being positioned as the year of the meme, 2024 may also be remembered as the year Solana solidified its position in the field.

The rise of Solana and the popularity of memecoin are closely linked trends, with Solana becoming the leader of memecoin activity due to low cost, fast transaction speeds and superior meme infrastructure in the form of Pump.fun Main centers.

Pump.fun first launched in January 2024, shaking up the space by allowing anyone to create and trade new tokens with minimal or no issuance. Since then, nearly 5 million tokens have been issued, a volume that has successfully fueled a surge in trading volume on Solana-based decentralized exchanges, resulting in an influx of capital that spurred activity across the chain while also solidifying Solana. Speculation is at the de facto heart of this cycle.

Transforming token deployment into a fast, user-friendly, no-code operation facilitates the rapid creation of memecoins, no matter how fleeting their cultural relevance.

We’re seeing celebrity memecoins kick off 2024 in extraordinary ways. Since Caitlyn Jenner gave away her tokens, we've seen a surge of interest in memecoin fortunes, paving the way for a wave of celebrity-backed "offline only" projects.

We’re also seeing pop culture references transformed into new coins by the minute, with memecoins themed after everyone’s favorite baby hippopotamus (MOODENG) or slain squirrel (PNUT) soaring into billions of dollarsMarket Cap – Reflecting cryptocurrencies’ long-held thesis that “everything will be tokenized.”

The pace and scale of Solana’s launches have proven to be extremely profitable, helping it outperform on a range of fundamental metrics such as daily decentralized transaction volume, active users and even revenue during certain periods. Ethereum. While Ethereum has also seen blue-chip memes command huge premiums and degen activity sparked on Base, degens have mostly made their home on Solana.

Critics say there are many reasons to question the durability of these new trends, with the opaque web of memecoin conspiracies and the deep concentration of many memecoin assets appearing to provide a difficult venue for bad actors to deal with.

But despite its fair share of fraud, botched launches, and on-chain crime, the free-flowing nature of the Solana token environment has always attracted participants seeking fast-paced opportunities. By the end of the year, Pump.fun accounted for the majority of on-chain transactions in the Solana ecosystem, making it a decisive force in reshaping the network’s identity around memes and “crypto-nativeness.”

While many memecoins are prone to disappearing quickly, those that manage to form strong, engaged communities prompt deeper scrutiny of the broader "Memecoin Super Cycle" analysis.

This phrase, popularized by Murad, highlights how memecoins allow us to rethink how token value arises from and evolves from a shared identity. Unlike “technological alternatives” that rely on staking or complex governance for participation, memecoins leverage the internet’s core social behaviors like creating, sharing, and enjoying memes, and use these methods to sustain the sharing of ideas and form communities.

If these tokens can form a unique, clear, and interesting sense of identity, they can provide powerful price appreciation as users become part of the meme. Additionally, by starting with tokens that have no promise or expectation of “real utility,” these tokens and their holders can build the foundation themselves, gradually launching grassroots products tied to the tokens. Whether it’s the integration of BONK with Bonkbot and bonkSOL; or the integration of MOTHER with Motherland, there are examples of emerging developments in the meme community.

This model can provide a new approach to product-market fit in the cryptocurrency space, starting with the formation of a strong identity and social belonging, rather than upfront technology. In the process, you define a clear user base and then build a product to serve that community.

In the past few months, AI agent memes have entered people’s consciousness,Shows how a coin can evolve from a simple meme to a token with meaningful fundamentals.

The trend began with GOAT, a token autonomously adopted by Twitter’s agent Terminal of Truths, whose rapid rise in price demonstrates the opportunities presented by the convergence of AI agents and memecoins.

Since then, other proxies and their corresponding tokens have been launched, gaining traction with different new features before adding more substantial features or use cases. For example, FXN, ZEREBRO, and AI16Z have all announced plans to launch AI infrastructure using their tokens, which have already launched fairly, which is the standard for memes. This model echoes the broader memecoin approach—first convene a community, attract targeted users, and then add a product or revenue stream that drives utility.

As the year comes to an end, meme coins have clearly demonstrated their impact on the direction of cryptocurrencies.

Solana's low fees and fast throughput, powered by Pump.fun, have spawned a highly active publishing environment where memes thrive and occasionally evolve into lasting communities. The success of these meme coins has in turn highlighted a new approach to product-market fit: establish an identity first, then add features to a user base that already trusts the project. AI agent tokens are now built on this model, showing that even highly experimental technologies can benefit from a lean, meme-driven foundation.

Looking ahead, it is clear that cultivating active communities, rather than promising immediate technical utility in predatory token economics, is becoming a powerful way to promote adoption and sustain the growth of cryptocurrencies. By combining strong social proof with targeted development, these meme-driven ecosystems offer a new path to true product-market fit—a model that, if it can survive the short-lived speculation, could ultimately provide Digital assets shape a more user-centric future.