Original title: (MIRAI token raised over 10 million dollars in 7 days! When AI shells are fitted with blockchain skeletons, do we still need real stars?)
Original author: Lawrence, Mars Finance
In May 2025, a capital experiment spanning virtual idols, artificial intelligence, and blockchain quietly launched in Tokyo. The MIRAI project, jointly launched by Aww Inc., a leading virtual human company in Japan, and Holoworld, an AI platform in the Solana ecosystem, raised over 12.9 million dollars in just a week, breaking Japan's Web3 fundraising record, thanks to the appeal of the top IP 'imma'. This project, which attempts to deeply bind ACG culture with decentralized finance, is ultimately a 'new paradigm' of metaverse narratives or yet another footnote of bubble frenzy?
1. Project background: From virtual idols on the streets of Shibuya to 'new species' on the blockchain
1. Aww Inc.: The creator of the virtual human empire
As one of the earliest companies to layout the virtual human track in Japan, Aww Inc. has built a matrix of over 20 virtual IPs, including Ria and Plusticboy, since launching the original virtual idol imma in 2018. Its core business model is 'Virtual as a Service' (VaaS), monetizing through brand endorsements, trendy brand collaborations, and film placements.
imma's breaking the circle effect is phenomenal: in SK-II's global skincare advertisement, she appears alongside real models; at the opening of BMW's Harajuku experience store in Tokyo, her holographic projection serves as the 'digital store manager'; even in the advertisements on Japan's JR Yamanote Line, daily commuters can see her dynamic image. This kind of 'virtual and real seamless' immersive marketing has made Aww Inc. a strategic partner of traditional giants like Mitsubishi UFJ and Shiseido.
2. Holoworld: The AI infrastructure wizard of the Solana ecosystem
Holoworld's positioning is 'virtual human on-chain infrastructure', 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 300 million dollars, currently 90 million dollars) has already been integrated into over 50 metaverse platforms and provides on-chain identity verification services for the South Korean girl group aespa and Western virtual influencer Lil Miquela. The cooperation with Aww Inc. is essentially a vertical integration of 'IP resources + technical infrastructure': Aww contributes the IP assets and fan traffic of imma, while Holoworld provides AI generation tools and on-chain interaction protocols, jointly building a virtual human economic ecosystem.
2. Token economics: The design logic behind the oversubscription of 12.9 million dollars
On May 10, less than two days after the on-chain virtual human MIRAI started fundraising, the official announced that the Mirai token pre-sale has ended early, and the amount raised has far exceeded our initial target. The team plans to refund excess funds. On-chain data shows that the Mirai pre-sale address has received 76,423.42 SOL, approximately 12.95 million dollars.
1. Token distribution: Centralized governance and liquidity games
According to the white paper, the total supply of MIRAI tokens is 1 billion, and the distribution structure shows a clear 'resource-oriented' characteristic:
This design implies two major controversies:
· Centralized risk: The team and partners hold a combined 25% of the tokens, and the pre-sale shares are highly concentrated (the top 100 addresses account for over 60%), which may reduce community governance to a 'rubber stamp';
· Liquidity trap: The 25% liquidity pool is released in stages, which may lead to extreme price fluctuations in the early stages. Historical data shows that similar model projects (like SkyAI) typically experience a weekly amplitude exceeding 300%.
2. Oversubscribed fundraising and refund mechanism: The 'double-edged sword' of market sentiment
The original fundraising target of 50,000 SOL was ultimately closed early with 76,831 SOL (approximately 12.9 million dollars), achieving an oversubscription rate of 153.6%. The project party promises to proportionally refund excess funds, but on-chain data shows that the top 10 addresses contributed 42% of the funding, showing significant 'whale control' characteristics. Although the refund mechanism can boost confidence in the short term (referencing the significant rebound after the SLERF incident), it may also trigger a 'prisoner's dilemma': some investors may choose to sell in the secondary market to avoid refund losses, leading to a spiral drop in price.
3. Price prediction: Trend simulation under multidimensional factor games
1. Short-term (1-3 months): Market maker operations and liquidity games
Wintermute's deep involvement (on-chain labels show its test address participated in the pre-sale, with the largest single Wintermute-related transaction moving nearly 15,000 SOL to the pre-sale address) provides a strong boost to the project. Referencing $AVA's launch performance:
· First-day performance: When launched in Q4 2024, $AVA's opening price was 0.12 dollars, which surged to 0.87 dollars within 24 hours (an increase of 625%), then fell back to 0.35 dollars;
· Market-making strategy: Wintermute completed initial control through 'impulse-driven surges + ladder-style sell-offs', with a weekly turnover rate of 580%.
If MIRAI replicates this path, it may present the following stages:
· Opening surge: With the popularity of imma on social media (over 860,000 Twitter followers), the price may quickly break through 0.5 dollars, approximately a market value of 50 million dollars;
· Profit-taking: About 30% of pre-sale investors are 'new studio investors' who may withdraw in bulk after 2-3x returns;
· Liquidity siphoning: If 25% of the initial liquidity pool is concentrated in Raydium, it may trigger MEV bots to attack, exacerbating volatility.
2. Mid-term (3-6 months): Ecosystem landing and narrative verification
The project roadmap indicates that in Q3, the 'Mirai Terminal beta version' will be launched, supporting three major functions:
· Virtual human minting: Users can generate exclusive images through AVA AI and mint them as NFTs;
· Reward economy: Fans use MIRAI tokens to buy virtual gifts, and IPs like imma can receive a share;
· Brand co-branding pool: Partners (like Uniqlo, Loft) can initiate crowdfunding for limited digital products.
At this stage, two major indicators need attention:
· MAU (Monthly Active Users): If the threshold of 100,000 is not broken, the token may fall into 'valuable but without a market';
· IP revenue share ratio: Whether transactions related to imma account for over 70% of the ecosystem reflects a deficiency in ecological diversity.
3. Long-term (over 1 year): The 'death cross' of the virtual human track
The life cycle law of virtual idols shows that the popularity peak of head IP usually lasts 18-24 months (like Hatsune Miku, Luo Tianyi). Since debuting in 2018, imma has entered its seventh year. Although it has extended its life cycle through 'cross-dimensional marketing', the risk of aesthetic fatigue among Generation Z users is increasing. If the team fails to incubate new IP or expand application scenarios (like VR concerts, AIGC content platforms), the token may become a 'MEME asset', relying on community speculation to maintain its valuation.
Conclusion: Can the 'dimensional wall' between the virtual and real be broken by tokens?
MIRAI's ambition is not just to issue a token but to attempt to build a triadic economic system of 'virtual human - fans - brands'. Its success depends on whether it can convert imma's traffic potential into on-chain activity and break through the 'toolification' bottleneck, creating a true digital identity paradigm.
However, when the capital frenzy subsides, we need to answer a fundamental question: does blockchain truly endow virtual idols with new value, or is it merely draped in a layer of decentralized 'emperor's new clothes'? Perhaps only time will provide the answer, but until then, investors must fasten their seatbelts—this journey across the dimensional wall is destined to be bumpy.
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