x402 narrative will definitely explode, PING will evolve and develop like the inscription market.

Author: Haotia; Source: X, @tmel0211

Everyone says that the emergence of x402 cooperative Meme coin PING is very similar to the BTC inscription craze of 2023. In what way is it similar? Where is the similarity? Will it evolve and develop like the inscription market? First, the answer: Yes. Now, let me explain the specific logic:

1) Why is it like this? The core is on-chain legitimate data + off-chain interpretation rights.

The operational logic of inscriptions is: Users send transactions to the BTC mainnet and hold specific UTXOs, but the BTC mainnet does not have the ability to determine which transactions are valid. The Ordinals protocol acts as the indexer that judges whether inscriptions are valid. It serves as a third-party arbitrator, scanning all transactions on the chain and determining which are valid true inscriptions according to its own defined rules, such as “First is First.”

The operating logic of PING is almost the same formula: Users send USDC to a specific address on the Base chain, which is dynamically returned by x402scan, equivalent to the user making a “payment request” to the x402 protocol. However, neither the Base chain nor the x402 protocol itself knows that this is for "minting $PING; in their eyes, this is just an ordinary ERC20 transfer.

What truly gives this transaction its “mint meaning” is the x402scan indexer: it scans all USDC transfers on the Base chain sent to a specific address, determines which transactions are “valid mints” according to its own defined rules (1 USDC = 5000 $PING), and then records them in an off-chain database and distributes tokens through a contract.

2. When it first came out, the inscriptions were resisted by the Bitcoin Core team because their existence only filled the BTC mainnet with a large number of dust transactions, offering no value. Clearly, following this line of thought, the existence logic of $PING is similar, but like the BTC mainnet, the x402 protocol, as an open standard, cannot do anything even if it is not appealing in the short term.

The principle is very simple, the assets that everyone has inscribed still exist on the BTC mainnet. Once the inscriptions lose their speculative significance, releasing them can still return some BTC. However, the PING that everyone mints has actually gone to the treasury wallet specified by x402scan. While the team is crowd-funding, they are also issuing tokens; the real x402 protocol has only been “exploited” in the end.

Don't rush to criticize me, this behavior is a “charge signal” action, which greatly benefits the exposure and dissemination of the x402 track's value. It is equivalent to forcibly creating use cases for the x402 protocol, and the effect is immediate; it can also be considered a pressure test for the x402 protocol, undoubtedly a “singularity in the narrative of x402,” which will give rise to a series of improvements and possibilities for ecological prosperity.

3) Will it evolve like the inscription market? Yes, as mentioned earlier, the existence of PING essentially serves as the indexer for x402scan. However, it clearly has significant issues: for example, assets are held under its own centralized entity, which contradicts the original intention of the x402 protocol to open payment channels for AI Agents, and it may not seamlessly integrate with other x402 protocols, nor does it have unified standards for minting, transferring, and burning operations.

Therefore, following the evolutionary logic of BRC20-ARC20-SRC20-Runes, it is believed that many new “inscriptions” claiming to be more “orthodox” will emerge.

For example, improving the custody method, changing the form of minting transactions, obtaining native protocol support, and so on. To exaggerate a bit, even if the x402scan protocol runs away or the Treasury absconds with funds, it cannot stop this wave from rising; Pandora's box has been opened!

Above.

I want to reiterate a point, the outbreak of the x402 narrative is certain. $PING has just sounded the charge, and there may be many developments in the market afterward. The above sharing is just a cognitive logic, not intended as any investment advice, but there is no need to be anxious. The upcoming excitement is worth joining in!