Is Labubu the real Meme? It has already understood the Web3 setup.


If Labubu were to go on-chain, it would likely burst into the top ten Meme projects. It doesn't issue tokens, mint NFTs, or go on-chain, yet all its operational logic precisely replicates the core gameplay of Web3. A closer look reveals that it actually understands 'emotion, narrative, and community mobilization' better than many Web3 projects.

Limited release is essentially a minting mechanism.

Labubu's box-drawing mechanism is essentially an offline version of a PFP project.

It relies on the scarcity of randomly hidden items to create uncertainty, resembling the random attribute combinations in NFTs.

Limited release time, scarce inventory, prices rise once snagged—this gameplay is identical to Minting on the blockchain. Snagging popular hidden items allows for high resale prices, which is essentially no different from trading cryptocurrencies or snatching up initial release NFTs.


Queuing up to buy is no different from battling Gas fees on-chain.

The scene at Labubu's popular item launch is very familiar:

Refresh glitches, page queues, inventory alerts updating continuously, just like the anxiety of snatching an airdrop on-chain.

You think you're drawing a trendy toy, but you're actually experiencing an off-chain DeFi mechanism simulation.


Community-driven, more like a DAO than many DAOs.

Labubu's players are highly organized:

Some are responsible for updating intelligence, tracking which stores release hidden items;

Some operate box-drawing battle report communities, forming 'doll circle KOLs';

Others create custom dolls, make secondary creations, and collaborate, forming a complete creative loop.

This mechanism does not require token incentives or token voting, yet it is more DAO than most DAOs.


Labubu's story is a narrative.

In the Web3 world, narrative is the core of value. TON is a narrative, Modular is a narrative, AI is a narrative.

Labubu's narrative is built on 'ugly-cute aesthetics', 'anti-mainstream settings', and 'character universes', and it has completed resonance creation through a mature IP emotional system.

Web3 tells stories to increase market value, Labubu tells stories to raise secondary prices; the logic is the same.


Natural fission, spreading without incentives

Web3's growth often relies on incentives like points, invite systems, and airdrop tasks; whereas Labubu relies entirely on organic content dissemination:

Players unbox videos, showcase hidden items, customize dolls, and set up displays, naturally becoming content generators.

Every player is a cost-free dissemination node.


So, who is the real Meme?


Labubu has no chain, no tokens, and no white paper, but it has accomplished everything a Meme project should do:

  • Control scarcity, ignite emotions.

  • Build community, spontaneous fission

  • Tell a good story, create a sense of culture


It has successfully run a complete commercial loop that Web3 aims to achieve in both Web2 and the real world.

Web3 has many technological innovations, but Labubu offers another path:

It's not about having a protocol first and then finding users; it's about having emotions, community, and culture first, with technology as an optional element.

Sometimes we must admit that Labubu is even more of a Meme than we understand.