Uncovering the Secrets Behind the Popularity of Kalshi and ai16z: The "Psychological Tactics" of the Crypto Market

The article explores the psychological tactics used by crypto projects to capture attention and market share, framing crypto marketing as a form of psychological warfare where narratives and memes are key weapons.

Kalshi's Entry Strategy: Kalshi, a prediction market platform, executed a coordinated campaign to enter the crypto space. They hired influencer John Wang and orchestrated a widespread publicity push across news outlets and social media, framing a single personnel change as a major industry event to create the perception of a paradigm shift.
ai16z's Meme-Driven Flywheel: The project launched a meme DAO around the idea of tokenizing venture firm a16z, gaining validation when Marc Andreessen responded. This buzz helped launch their AI product, Eliza—a GPT wrapper—which quickly gained traction. The hype created a flywheel effect: attracting liquidity, investors, and further speculation. The team then monetized by exchanging "technology" for tokens from other AI projects, leading to a market saturated with low-quality ventures.
Core Insight: Successful crypto projects rely on psychological tactics—storytelling, memes, and perceived exclusivity—rather than just technology. However, these strategies have short lifespans; once the market recognizes the pattern, it moves on. The article concludes that in today’s crypto environment, delivering real value is becoming more critical than pure hype.

Author: TM

Compiled by Tim, PANews

I probably shouldn’t have posted this because it’s so insightful. Let’s delve into the world of crypto marketing: A masterclass in psychological tactics.

If you don't know what psychological tactics mean? It means you've been manipulated your entire adult life.

Welcome to the world of Meme Wars.

 Milady

Example 1: Kalshi enters the crypto market

Let's start with Kalshi. This isn't to spread FUD; in fact, I admire their execution. I'm just sharing my personal thoughts on the Kalshi case, though nothing here is confirmed.

As the meme coin craze faded, prediction markets began to gain traction, and some influencers, including John Wang, began to push the narrative.

There's no doubt that prediction markets are fairer than memecoins. Memecoins are a brutal 1-vs-1,000 game, while prediction markets at least even out the odds. But let's be honest: crypto enthusiasts simply love tokens, and they always have.

So the question becomes: How to capture the memecoin market share without issuing new coins while challenging leading platforms like Polymarket?

Answer: Psychological warfare

This is what happened:

John Wang signed with Kalshi long before the official announcement.
In the previous months, social interactions and researcher citations had boosted his account's popularity.
When the news finally broke, the publicity campaign was coordinated: news outlets, influencers, and "research" pages all reported the hiring of the same KOL.

 News reports on hiring cryptocurrency influencers

This was framed as a major event, as if Kalshi had just poached an executive from Google or Apple.

A simple yet clever psychological tactic: turning a personnel change into a full-scale marketing campaign.

Kalshi isn’t just entering the crypto space; he’s making it look like a paradigm shift.

They paid these websites, research institutions, and influencers to discuss the announcement. A personnel shakeup that caused a stir. Kalshi officially entered the crypto market with a fanfare comparable to the FAANG stock listings.

A simple but effective psychological tactic: they take the announcement and spin it into a massive marketing campaign.

 Is John Wang the marketing manager of Kalshi?

Example 2: ai16z flywheel

Now, let's talk about ai16z

This idea was truly genius, and it made people (including me) really look forward to the future of Crypto x AI integration.

The script is this:

They launched a Meme DAO around the idea of tokenizing venture capital giant a16z.
Marc Andreessen himself responded, verifying the dissemination value of this meme.
Suddenly, the entire industry's attention was focused on this "new AI fund."
Then came the product launch: Eliza AI Agent.

It quickly shot to the top of the GitHub charts. The timing was perfect, and the buzz was unstoppable.

 Shaw is showing off

But at the bottom level, it is just a GPT wrapper. To put it bluntly, it just connects the API of the existing large language model to the front end, which is nothing groundbreaking.

Who cares? Actually, no one cares. The product works, the atmosphere is right, and that's all that matters.

The psychological tactics here are as much about narrative as they are about technique.

Joining the ai16z DAO has become a status symbol. Like wearing a Rolex in its early days, becoming an "ai16z partner" signifies insider status, a title that attracts developers from top universities and deep-pocketed believers.

The DAO’s market capitalization soared to $2.5 billion (but liquidity was laughably low). This set in motion a flywheel effect: hype attracted liquidity, liquidity attracted investors, and investors fueled more hype.

But then the question arises: how to cash out without ruining the chart?

Answer: You don’t. Instead, ai16z “sells” their technology to other crypto AI projects in exchange for up to 10% of the token distribution agreement and marketing support.

The result? An overflow of half-baked AI projects. Support, pump-and-dump.

 Shaw after selling off his free crypto AI tokens

The psychological tactics worked. Liquidity was drained, and now ai16z is plotting a comeback.

The essence of psychological tactics

The problem is: the same routine cannot succeed twice

Once people figure out the gimmick, it's gone. They'll move on to the next new thing. That's why so many projects keep recycling the same old buzzwords:

airdrop
Roadmap
Buyback
flywheel
Economic Model

If you're listening to this, it's early days for this project. In this market, talking is out; delivering is key.

Welcome to the Meme Wars

Crypto marketing today is not advertising, it’s warfare.

Narratives are weapons, and interactions are ammunition. Every announcement, collaboration, or controversy is a battle for mindshare.

Winning projects aren’t just selling technology; they’re executing coordinated psychological tactics: weaving stories, memes, and strategies that the target audience is willing to believe.

Not everyone plays by the same rules.

So if you want to grab market share in this industry, you better arm yourself. Assemble your team like a Roman warlord ready to conquer.

Because in crypto, it’s a war.