- GHIBLI meme coins, sparked by AI-generated Studio Ghibli images, surge, with the namesake meme coin reaching a $21M market cap, fueled by viral social media trends.
- Influencers like Sam Altman and Elon Musk joined the trend, indirectly boosting the token which now targets a $100M market cap.
- Despite a market downturn, the meme coin’s explosive growth, driven by community support, highlights meme coin volatility and the need for cautious investment.
GHIBLI-inspired meme coins on Ethereum and Solana blockchains, have flooded the market with “ghiblification” emerging as the biggest one yet with a $21 million market cap as of Asian morning hours.
The token’s growing popularity comes after OpenAI rolled out an image generation tool for its ChatGPT-4o model on March 25. Soon after the launch, crypto enthusiasts created meme coins inspired by viral Ghibli-esque images, belonging to the all-time hit Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro. Over the last three decades, Studio Ghibli has been one of the most renowned and influential animation studios in the world.
The surge is further fueled by an online trend of nostalgic cartoon references. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman hopped on the trend by sharing portraits of themselves generated by the model. Even the richest man on the planet, Elon Musk, jumped into the frenzy by posting a Lion-King-themed image, showcasing his lookalike holding a Shiba Inu dog- a humorous ode to the “Circle of Life” with the caption, “Theme of the day.”
Netizens speculate this could be a cryptic hint of his current focus. While Musk and other influencers did not explicitly mention the meme coin, it continued to receive tremendous traction.
GHIBLI’s 10k Holders and $100M Market Cap Hopes
With the token pushing towards ATH and 10k holders, market observers believe an active community support could drive $GHIBLI to the coveted 100 million market cap. “The token actually has nice volume and such a good community for a 20-30 million market cap in the near future. It already made 20 million in volume in just 24 hours (more than $Jelly, a Solana meme coin),” wrote the user.
Despite the broader market downturn, GHIBLI exploded, reinforcing the narrative that meme coins can thrive even when the market is struggling. As their prices are driven by social media trends and hype, one should exercise extreme caution and consider one’s risk appetite before investing.