Moonbirds officially announced that its native token $BIRB will officially launch its TGE on Solana on January 28, with a total supply of 1 billion tokens. This blue-chip NFT project, which has generated over $1 billion in trading volume, is officially starting its transformation from digital collectibles to a "Meme + Physical" hybrid business model.

On the eve of the TGE, Moonbirds' parent company Orange Cap Games officially released the "Birbillions Thesis" white paper, outlining an ambitious goal: to create a crypto-native consumer goods company with an annual revenue of $1 billion.

Referred to as the "Billion Big Bird Plan."

This is a very ambitious goal. Why does the team dare to set such a target?

1. Starting with Moonbirds: A Development Timeline That Wasn't Smooth

The Crazy NFT Era

Back in 2022, the NFT market was at its most frenzied stage.

Moonbirds burst onto the scene with 10,000 pixel-style owl PFPs, minted at a price of 2.5 ETH, which was about $7,500 at the time. It sold out in two days, and the trading volume in the first week exceeded $280 million.

This figure seems exaggerated even today. How did Moonbirds achieve this? Many may still remember their "nesting" mechanism: holders could lock their NFTs on-chain to earn rewards, visual upgrades, and exclusive opportunities related to sub-series like Oddities and Mythics.

This staking system was indeed a great marketing case during the NFT craze of that year. It truly enhanced community stickiness and laid the foundation for subsequent ecological expansion. As of now, the cumulative trading volume of the Moonbirds series has surpassed $1 billion, with a floor price around 2 ETH.

The Turning Point of the Story

But bull markets are not permanent. Starting in the second half of 2022, controversies surrounding copyright, positioning, and communication began to accumulate, and community trust was continuously eroded. By the end of 2023, Moonbirds and a large number of once-famous NFT series were no longer the "center of discussion," often regarded merely as relics of the previous cycle's glory.

Change occurred in May 2025: Moonbirds was acquired by Orange Cap Games from Yuga Labs. This changed a very important aspect: Moonbirds transitioned from "managed IP" to "operated product."

Since then, Moonbirds has embarked on a transformation path similar to that of Pudgy Penguins: trading card games, blind box figurines, graded collectibles, and collaborations with top global toy distributors. It expanded from Ethereum to multi-chain, from purely digital assets to a matrix of physical products, completing a qualitative transformation. The number of independent wallets holding Moonbirds and birb IP surged from about 10,000 to nearly 400,000, covering multiple chains such as Ethereum, Solana, and TON.

Thinking back, after the NFT craze, how many other NFTs have you heard of besides Penguins and Moonbirds?

Even the name Moonbirds has gradually faded into the background, replaced by the lighter, more colloquial, and easily remixable "Birb" and "Birbish."

What Exactly is the $BIRB Token?

The issuance of the $BIRB token is the most critical part of Moonbirds' transformation strategy. The token will serve as an "ecological coordination layer," connecting meme dissemination, physical product sales, community incentives, and more. According to currently available information, the total supply of 1 billion $BIRB tokens will be partially distributed through airdrops to Moonbirds NFT holders, sub-series holders, and holders of soul-bound tokens obtained through community activities. Over 256,957 independent addresses have already claimed 419,039 SBTs in preparation for airdrop eligibility.

2. Interpreting the "Birbillions Thesis": A White Paper That Doesn't Discuss Vision

The "Birbillions Thesis" white paper released on the eve of the TGE reveals something if you read the original text:

It Really Seems Like an Academic Paper

"The core argument of this paper is that sustainable crypto assets must succeed in both aspects. They must be absurd enough to attract attention, promote participation, and enhance the speed of cultural dissemination; at the same time, they must be real enough to convert that attention into lasting economic activity. More importantly, this economic activity should itself promote the dissemination of memes, especially to circles outside the crypto space. This is not a compromise between two paths, but a synthesis: treating memetic and entrepreneurial elements as complementary rather than opposing factors."

It really doesn't look like a white paper; it resembles a research report from a16z or a doctoral thesis studying blockchain marketing.

In summary, it is quite simple:

On one side of the crypto industry is the meme, characterized by speed, strong dissemination, low barriers, and intense emotions, but it also decays rapidly.

On the other side is the enterprise, which can survive and generate revenue, but many crypto business models essentially charge the most active users repeatedly.

OCG (Orange Cap Games, the parent company of Moonbirds and Birb IP) believes that if these two paths fight separately, they will ultimately hit a ceiling. A truly sustainable structure must possess both capabilities: memes drive dissemination, while enterprises ensure retention. Moonbirds does not aim to "balance" the two but treats them as different stages in a flywheel. Memes create attention, attention is captured by physical products, products generate real income, and income, in turn, expands distribution, which creates new attention.

Why Issue Tokens Now?

The reason this logic seems valid today is that technology is no longer the main differentiator. Faster chains, lower fees, and more complex virtual machines have almost no perceptible differences for marginal users. What is truly scarce is something that can be understood, remembered, and discussed repeatedly.

You don't need to explain what on-chain assets are to an outsider; you just need to hand them a character they are willing to showcase and collect. "In the new era of cryptocurrency development, technology is no longer a bottleneck; the key to growth lies in distribution."

At the same time, "OCG generated approximately $8 million in revenue this year from the sale of physical collectibles, and this is only our second year of operation." From a revenue logic perspective, Moonbirds has already met the conditions for issuing tokens.

Where Did This $8 Million Come From?

To understand why Moonbirds dares to talk about $1 billion in revenue, one must first grasp another ace up OCG's sleeve, Vibes TCG.

Vibes is a physical + digital hybrid card game developed by OCG based on the Pudgy Penguins IP, set to officially launch in December 2024. It resembles the collectible card games you may be familiar with from childhood, like Yu-Gi-Oh!, but is not entirely the same; its collectible value and community recognition are completely different.

Since its launch, Vibes TCG has exceeded most people's expectations:

• Sold 8.6 million cards in the past year, generating $6 million in primary sales
• Over 350,000 online battles
• Entered over 100 global retail channels, including well-known card game retailers like Star City Games, securing partnerships with GTS and Asmodee (the world's second-largest toy distributor)
• Launched a digital version on the Epic Games Store, entering mainstream game distribution platforms

Choosing to create a physical card game is a strategy that seems traditional but is actually extremely clever. From Magic: The Gathering to Pokémon, from Yu-Gi-Oh! to Hearthstone, card games have consistently been one of the categories that generate sustained repurchase and community stickiness. Players don't just buy and leave; they continue to purchase booster packs, participate in tournaments, and trade rare cards.

Moreover, TCGs are naturally suited for IP extension. The cute imagery and rich character settings of Pudgy Penguins can easily translate into card mechanics and visual designs. Each card tells a story of a character, and each battle extends the IP's worldview.

In the Solana Birbathon, the team has confirmed that the third version will feature Moonbirds.

More importantly, physical cards are true retail products. They can enter Walmart, RT-Mart, any toy store, and card shop. This distribution capability is something purely digital NFTs can never achieve. When a child sees a Pudgy Penguins card booster pack in a toy store, they don't need to know what blockchain is; they just need to think these penguins are cute and want to collect them.

From another perspective, TCG players are actually the perfect "quasi-crypto users": they are accustomed to paying for scarcity, used to the high volatility of secondary markets, and familiar with authentication and collecting. For these card enthusiasts, transitioning from a $100 collectible card to a $100 Birb card presents almost no cognitive barrier. When these millions of cardholders begin to enter the ecosystem through $BIRB, this "demand driven by consumption rather than speculation" will be the most solid foundation supporting revenue.

Some people finished unpacking 277 boxes in 6 hours.

Not Benchmarking Penguins, Not Benchmarking BAYC, But Benchmarking Pop Mart

A repeatedly mentioned goal in the white paper is to create a crypto-native company that does not rely on transaction fees, liquidations, or token sales, but achieves scaled revenue through consumer goods sales.

This is also why OCG has started to benchmark Pop Mart. The publicly traded stock of Pop Mart serves as an effective tool for measuring Labubu's revenue value, and the role of the token relative to Moonbirds is similarly significant; Labubu has created immense cultural value—free marketing, social recognition, and the vitality of the secondary market—but much of this value cannot be captured through stock prices. The design of $BIRB aims to fill this gap.

Birbillions Goal: The Billion Big Bird Plan?

The term "Birb" itself is quite interesting. It is short, clearly pronounced, and has roots in internet culture. It is familiar enough to feel like it should exist; yet "silly" enough to spread quickly; and specific enough to be "owned."

The core goal proposed in the white paper is straightforward: to create the first crypto-native consumer goods company with an annual revenue of $1 billion, without relying on transaction fees, leveraged liquidations, or token issuance.

But this goal is not unattainable: Pop Mart generated approximately $900,000 in revenue in its second year of operation, and around $20 million in the two years before going public. OCG created about $8 million in revenue from physical collectibles in its second year of operation. In the past 12 months, Vibes card game sales exceeded 8.6 million units, generating over $6 million in primary market sales. During the same period, Moonbirds' growth rate actually surpassed that of Pop Mart, despite having fewer SKUs, lower brand recognition, and a less mature retail network.

"The core assertion of the Birbillions theory is that when these two elements are merged into a single flywheel—attention converts to products, products convert to revenue, and revenue flows back into distribution—you can create the first crypto-native consumer goods company achieving an annual revenue of $1 billion. This is precisely how consumer companies have always succeeded: winning shelf space, winning repeat purchases, and making culture transmissible."

3. Token Economic Design: Long-term Thinking and Community Incentives

Just this week, Moonbirds officially announced the $BIRB token economic model. This design is quite interesting and reflects the team's deep consideration for long-term value creation.

65% Allocated to the Community: An Exceeding Commitment

Moonbirds has chosen a rather aggressive community allocation ratio: 65% of the total supply.

There is a key design concept here: Moonbirds has divided this 65% community share into five different incentive modules, each corresponding to different aspects of ecological development:

• Holder Rewards (27%): This is the core incentive for Moonbirds, Mythics, and Oddities NFT holders, aimed at building a stronger community cohesion;
• Ecosystem Partner Expansion (12%): A performance-based allocation mechanism for acquiring high-value partners, driving user growth, and executing regional brand activations;
• Value Chain Incentives (10%): Rewards for community members contributing to the project's physical infrastructure, incentivizing operational excellence;
• Liquidity (8%): Ensuring healthy market depth and convenient trading experiences, used for centralized exchange (CEX) listings, deposit activities, and market-making services;
• Innovation Reserve (8%): A strategic reserve set aside for the future development of the ecosystem;

It can be seen that Moonbirds' understanding of the concept of "community" goes beyond just "holders" to include partners, contributors, liquidity providers, and all participants in the ecosystem.

Nesting 2.0

At the same time, Moonbirds launched the Nesting 2.0 protocol, which is a design filled with long-term thinking:

• NFT holders can deposit their Moonbirds, Mythics, or Oddities into the Nesting protocol.
• After depositing, they will receive an SBT as proof.
• Over the next 24 months, on the 28th of each month, nested NFTs can claim 1/24 of their total allocation.
• If only nested for part of the time, rewards will be proportionally distributed.
• NFTs nested in the first 7 days are considered to have been nested for a full month, providing early participants with a buffer period.

This design not only avoids significant selling pressure during the TGE but also gives holders a reason for long-term participation. If you really want to maximize your token earnings, you need to continuously stake your NFTs for a full two years.

This restraint may actually reflect a more responsible attitude. After all, if you truly believe this project aims to last for 10 years or even longer as a genuine consumer brand, it is crucial to consider whether this token and ecosystem will still exist and continue to create value one year, two years, or five years down the line.

Community Reaction: Should We Be Long-term Thinkers?

After the token economic model was announced, community reactions showed a clear polarization.

Some holders expressed dissatisfaction. A user named Gomie bluntly criticized: "It's not 2021 anymore. Staking is outdated and troublesome. Renaming staking as Nesting 2.0 is just a gimmick. OG Moonbirds holders have waited 4 years for an airdrop, and now the Moonbird team says, 'I see your 4 NFTs, and I'll give you 2 more.'"

However, there were also voices defending Moonbirds' choice. Well-known KOL Garga.eth (Greg Solano) tweeted to validate this design:

"OCG is not the Moonbird team from 4 years ago. They haven't received any minting funds or royalties from 4 years ago."

He further pointed out: "You either want to participate long-term in the Moonbirds community and stay engaged in the game, or you don't. Your NFTs are worth much more than when Spencer took over this project, and regardless, you will receive some airdrops on the first day."

Spencer and Orange Cap Games only acquired Moonbirds in June of this year, and just 7 months later, they are launching the token. "Many NFT projects and protocols promised ecological tokens over 5 years ago, and to this day, they still haven't had a TGE (although many have points programs). Some protocols have completely abandoned airdrop promises and went straight to ICO."

He believes that many leading NFT projects like Azuki and Doodles launched tokens last year, but so far, holders do not seem to recognize ecological tokens; most are only concerned about the NFTs themselves.

"Birb airdropped some tokens to NFT holders on the first day and then allowed them to claim monthly over the next 24 months. This is a bold and risky strategy, as many NFT holders prefer to view airdrops as 'cash-out moments' and sell to move on. There will definitely be some who do this. So I don't blame Spencer for trying to create a situation where NFT holders are long-term bound to the token."

Conclusion: A Gamble on a New Model

The TGE of $BIRB is not the end but the starting point of a larger experiment.

The core question of this experiment is simple: In 2025, what should a crypto project rely on to survive?

Is it relying on temporary hype and speculation? Or on real products and sustained revenue? Is it relying on short-term token price surges? Or on long-term brand value accumulation?

Moonbirds' answer is clear: the "Billion Big Bird Plan" requires both, but in different ways.

The team is betting that the logic of consumer goods can take root and flourish in the crypto world, and that physical products can create real value for the token.

The community is betting that this team can deliver on its promises, that this brand can continue to grow, and that the two-year wait can yield greater returns.

The market is betting on whether this "not quite like a token issuance" method of issuing tokens can truly carve out a new path for NFT project transformation.

A year from now, when we look back at the TGE of $BIRB, what will we see? A failed case of evaporated market value, a dissolved community, and a token that has gone to zero? Or a successful transformation marked by revenue growth, user expansion, and steadily rising token value?

Regardless of the outcome, in an industry filled with quick money and speculation, the fact that some are willing to seriously create products, patiently build brands, and believe in long-termism is itself a very idealistic story.

The goal of $1 billion sounds crazy, but if no one dares to dream this dream, how could anyone possibly achieve it?

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