Original Title: "MIRAI Coin Raises Over $10 Million in 7 Days! When AI Meets Blockchain, Do We Still Need Real Celebrities?"

Original Author: Lawrence, Mars Finance

In May 2025, a capital experiment spanning virtual idols, artificial intelligence, and blockchain quietly kicked off in Tokyo. The MIRAI project, launched by Japan's leading virtual human company Aww Inc. in partnership with the Solana ecosystem AI platform Holoworld, raised over $12.9 million in funding in just one week, breaking Japan's Web3 project fundraising record. This project, which attempts to deeply integrate the 2D culture with decentralized finance, is it a "new paradigm" of the metaverse narrative, or another footnote in the frenzy of a bubble?

Chapter 1: Project Background - From Shibuya Street Virtual Idol to Blockchain "New Species"

1. Aww Inc.: The Creator of the Virtual Human Empire

As one of the earliest companies in Japan to enter the virtual human race, Aww Inc. has built a matrix covering over 20 virtual IPs, including the first-generation virtual idol imma launched in 2018. Its core business model is "Virtual as a Service" (VaaS), achieving commercialization through brand endorsements, trendy brand collaborations, and movie and TV placements.

Imma's crossover effect is phenomenal: in SK-II's global skincare ad, she appeared alongside real-life models; at the opening of BMW's Tokyo Harajuku store, her holographic projection served as the "digital store manager"; and even in the train car ads on the JR Yamanote Line in Japan, daily commuters can see her dynamic image. This "virtual reality without boundaries" immersive marketing has made Aww Inc. a strategic partner of traditional giants like Mitsubishi UFJ and Shiseido.

2. Holoworld: The AI Infrastructure Enthusiast in the Solana Ecosystem

Holoworld positions itself as "on-chain infrastructure for virtual humans," and its core product, the AVA AI engine, can map real human actions to virtual images in real-time through 3D scanning and deep learning.

The previously issued governance token $AVA (with a peak market value of 3 billion USD and current market value of 90 million USD) has integrated with over 50 metaverse platforms and provided on-chain identity verification services for the Korean girl group aespa and the Western virtual influencer Lil Miquela. The collaboration with Aww Inc. is essentially a vertical integration of "IP Resources + Technical Infrastructure": Aww contributes imma's IP assets and fan traffic, while Holoworld provides AI generation tools and on-chain interaction protocols, jointly building the virtual influencer economy ecosystem.

II. Tokenomics: Design Logic Behind the $12.9 Million Oversubscription

On May 10, less than two days after the launch of the on-chain virtual human MIRAI's fundraising, the official announcement stated that the Mirai token presale has ended early, having raised an amount far beyond our initial target. The team plans to refund the excess funds. On-chain data shows that the Mirai presale address has received 76,423.42 SOL tokens, equivalent to around 12.95 million USD.

1. Token Allocation: Centralized Governance and Liquidity Game

According to the whitepaper, the total supply of MIRAI tokens is 1 billion, with the allocation structure showing a clear "resource-oriented" feature:

This design implies two major controversies:

· Centralization Risk: The team and partners collectively hold 25% of the tokens, with the presale share highly concentrated (the top 100 addresses hold over 60%), potentially turning community governance into a "rubber stamp";

· Liquidity Trap: 25% of the liquidity pool is released in stages, which may lead to significant early price volatility. Historical data shows that similar model projects (such as SkyAI) commonly experience a price fluctuation of over 300% in the first week of launch.

2. Oversubscription and Refund Mechanism: The "Double-Edged Sword" of Market Sentiment

The original fundraising target of 50,000 SOL tokens eventually concluded with 76,831 SOL tokens (approximately 12.9 million USD), achieving an oversubscription ratio of 153.6%. The project team pledged to proportionally refund the excess funds, but on-chain data reveals that the top 10 addresses contributed 42% of the funding, showing significant "whale control." While the refund mechanism can temporarily boost confidence (as seen in the significant rebound after the SLERF event), it may also trigger a "prisoner's dilemma": some investors, to avoid refund losses, may choose to sell on the secondary market, leading to a downward price spiral.

Chapter 3: Price Prediction: Trend Analysis in a Multi-Factor Game

1. Short-Term (1-3 months): Market Maker Operation and Liquidity Game

Wintermute's deep involvement (on-chain tags show its testing address participating in the presale, with a maximum single Wintermute-related transfer of nearly 15wu 881sol to the presale address) has given the project a strong boost. Reference $AVA's listing performance:

· First-Day Performance: When launched in Q4 2024, $AVA opened at $0.12, surged to $0.87 within 24 hours (a 625% increase), and then fell back to $0.35;

· Market Making Strategy: Wintermute completed initial control through "pulse-like price surges + staggered selling," with a high turnover rate of up to 580% in the first week.

If MIRAI replicates this path, the following stages may emerge:

· Opening Surge: Leveraging imma's social media popularity (with over 860k Twitter followers), the price may rapidly break through $0.5, equivalent to a $50 million market cap;

· Profit Taking: Around 30% of presale investors are "IDO studios" who may withdraw funds in bulk after a 2-3x return;

· Liquidity Drain: If 25% of the initial liquidity pool is concentrated on Raydium, it may trigger MEV bot sandwich attacks, exacerbating volatility.

2. Medium-Term (3-6 months): Ecosystem Implementation and Narrative Validation

The project roadmap indicates that in Q3, the ​​Mirai Terminal test version​​ will be launched, supporting three main functions:

· Virtual Avatar Creation: Users can generate a unique avatar through AVA AI and mint it as an NFT;

· Tipping Economy: Fans use MIRAI tokens to buy virtual gifts, with IP holders like imma receiving a share;

· Brand Collaboration Pool: Partners (e.g., Uniqlo, Loft) can initiate limited edition digital product crowdfunding.

This stage requires attention to two key indicators:

​​· MAU (Monthly Active Users): If the threshold of 100,000 is not surpassed, the token may fall into a state of "valuable but illiquid";

· IP Revenue Share Ratio: Whether imma-related transactions account for over 70% of the ecosystem, reflecting a lack of ecosystem diversity.

​​3. Long-Term (1 Year and Beyond): The "Death Cross" of the Virtual Idol Track​​

The lifecycle law of virtual idols shows that the popularity peak of top IPs usually lasts for 18-24 months (e.g., Hatsune Miku, Luo Tianyi). Since imma debuted in 2018, it has entered its seventh year. Although its lifecycle has been extended through "cross-dimensional marketing," the risk of Generation Z user aesthetic fatigue has intensified. If the team fails to incubate new IPs or expand application scenarios (e.g., VR concerts, AIGC content platforms), the token may become a "MEME-ified asset," relying on community hype to sustain its valuation.

​​Conclusion: Can the "Dimension Wall" Between Virtuality and Reality Be Broken by the Token?​​

MIRAI's ambition is not just to issue a token but to attempt to build a tripartite economic system of "virtual person - fan - brand." Its success depends on whether it can transform imma's traffic potential into on-chain activity and break through the "toolization" bottleneck to create a true digital identity paradigm.

However, as the capital frenzy subsides, we need to answer a fundamental question: Has blockchain truly brought new value to virtual idols, or has it merely donned a layer of decentralized "new clothes of the emperor"? Perhaps only time can provide an answer, but before that, investors must fasten their seat belts—this journey across the dimensional wall is bound to be bumpy.

Original Article Link

Welcome to join the official BlockBeats community:

Telegram Subscription Group: https://t.me/theblockbeats

Telegram Discussion Group: https://t.me/BlockBeats_App

Official Twitter Account: https://twitter.com/BlockBeatsAsia