TechFlow reported on November 28 that, according to Cointelegraph, MetaMask co-founder Dan Finlay has been experimenting with launching meme coins on Ethereum and Solana to explore issues of user consent and trust within the Web3 ecosystem. He deployed tokens named "Consent" and "I Don't Consent" on Ethereum and Solana via the Clanker bot and Pump.fun platforms, respectively. The experiment showed that rapid trading activity caused the token values to inflate significantly, with Finlay's holdings briefly exceeding $100,000.
However, the experiment revealed numerous problems inherent in the meme coin ecosystem. Due to the lack of clear positioning and purpose for these tokens, investors continuously attempted to assign deeper meanings to them. Some individuals even issued threats toward Finlay or demanded long-term development plans. Finlay drew a parallel between this phenomenon and issues surrounding data usage consent in AI, specifically citing Bluesky’s practice of using public posts to train AI models without users’ explicit consent. He called for stronger trust mechanisms and user consent frameworks within the Web3 ecosystem.
Finlay emphasized that the meme coin space urgently needs better tools and incentive structures. He proposed building new systems enabling token issuers to exercise fine-grained control over their tokens, including restricting trades to specific communities and offering structured sale methods. He stressed that this is not only an ethical imperative but also essential for building better products: "Apps shouldn’t become toxic asset pools, communities shouldn’t be filled with users issuing personal threats, and your equity shouldn’t be diluted by anonymous whales."
