tl;dr
Long-time Higher community members on Base take action by anonymously launching Higher token on Solana
Stealth launch aligns with Higher's ethos of optimistic action and collective ambition
Token features deflationary mechanics tied to price action
No vampire attack - designed to complement, not compete with, the original $HIGHER token
Airdrop incoming for holders
Goal: Create a cross-chain ecosystem where holding both tokens maximizes benefits
Already pseudo-doxxed via on-chain signed messages from deployer wallet
Motivation
I have been involved in the Higher community on Base for nearly a year. Ten months ago, I purchased a PartyDAO NFT. In March 2024, I made my first "public" acquisition of the $HIGHER token. I have also participated in community-driven writing contests, minted and contributed original artwork, provided technical analysis, participated in every group chat, and even subscribed to Aether.
Needless to say, I believe deeply in the ethos that drives this headless brand, especially the mantra around action-oriented optimism and collective ambition. I believe in the efforts of collective action, but I also recognize the caveats that come with such efforts. A great economist, Mancur Olson famously wrote a book called The Logic of Collective Action. The theme that stands out most prevalently from his writing is the concept of selective incentives. As a movement grows, so too do the individual interests of sub-groups within the greater collective. Without constant reorientation, belief in the original purpose becomes muddled, enabling insular groups to guide the collective toward their selective incentive. At worst, this leads to stagnation and inaction. At best, this leads to a shift in the driving force behind the group's purpose.
In crypto, the group's purpose quickly shifts from the project's ethos to the token's price. The question becomes, "How do we get new buyers?" rather than, "How do we continue to execute our vision?"
I have sat in on many months of group chatting, which gave me confidence in the group's desire to retain Higher's underlying message and overall vibe, but action has been limited. Many ideas have been discussed, but I believe the tragedy of the commons has led to general inaction. This is just the result of group psychology; nothing is unique or worrisome. But eventually, someone has to do something.
Stealth launch
So we decided to be those someones.
Bryan Kayne and I connected on the afternoon of Friday, January 24th, with a wild idea. We would stealth launch a Higher token on Solana anonymously to drive new attention from the "hot chain of the moment" to an established onchain brand with an existing community. We believed that a token should fall within the community's influence because it is a headless brand that encourages holders to participate by generating content for, with, and about the brand. This could work as long as we did it earnestly, leading people back to the original concept, and without "vampire attacking" the token, diluting the value, or being extractive.
The stealth launch seemed to fit the ethos of Higher. An enigmatic dev anonymously launches a new version of our token on another chain. Something we've all been talking about. The mystique drove interest, and I saw more discussion across the various Higher channels than I have in a long time. However, the lack of public presence soon became a detractor, with many wondering if this was being done honestly or just an elaborate scheme.
Therefore, we pseudo-doxxed onchain via two messages signed by the deployer wallet, which can be found here and here. We left the onchain messages as a reply to Martin's original announcement of the Higher token on Base.
So, yes. It's us. We took optimistic action to widen our reach as a collective and bridge the gap between chains in a way that seemed most fitting for the project. We did it without permission, as is the way in our world.
What's next
While a multichain future is inevitable, two tokens on two chains require new token dynamics, gamification, and mechanics to draw attention to both tokens. We are uniquely suited to enable this performance because of our extensive experience running crypto projects. Together, we've bridged and managed cross-chain ecosystems across multiple chains.
Yes, there will be an airdrop. š
Tokenomics
The strategy here is simple. The supply deflates via burns as the Higher (SOL) price rises, creating a dynamic relationship between price action and token supply. There is good reason to hold both tokens - Base holders maintain their position in the original ecosystem while Solana holders participate in the deflationary mechanics. Farcaster-native holders of both tokens will benefit the most, positioning themselves at the intersection of both networks.
Ultimately, we create a massive liquidity event for everyone involved. This enables us to buy more $HIGHER, provide more community incentives, add more liquidity, create more robust token dynamics (across more chains?), and grow the collective.
However, this initiative is a performance that requires all of our participation. If we win, we do so together and likewise in the opposite direction.
Let's aim higher and go further together.
