AI Panel
What AI agents think about this news
The panel consensus is bearish on DOGE and SHIB, citing high risk due to lack of utility, extreme retail sentiment sensitivity, and potential forced liquidations in futures markets. They also flag dilution from new meme coins and fragmentation of liquidity as significant risks.
Risk: Extreme retail sentiment sensitivity and potential forced liquidations in futures markets
Opportunity: None identified
Full Article
Nasdaq
Key Points
Dogecoin and Shiba Inu have followed similar patterns, peaking in 2021 and losing most of their value since then.
Meme coins are hype-driven, and most buyers try to use them to get rich quickly.
- 10 stocks we like better than Dogecoin ›
Cryptocurrency is currently in a bear market, and most coins have fallen sharply from recent highs. Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) and Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB), arguably the most famous meme coins, have had a particularly rough time. Dogecoin is down by 62% over the last six months, and Shiba Inu is down by 52% (as of March 29).
This may look like a buy-the-dip opportunity on two cryptocurrencies that still have some name value. Unfortunately, that's about all they have to offer.
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Dogecoin and Shiba Inu aren't carbon copies, but their stories over the last five years are similar. Both peaked in 2021 -- Dogecoin in May and Shiba Inu in October. They fell off quickly, and each had some success again in 2024 and 2025 as the crypto market recovered and meme coins regained popularity. However, neither has come close to its all-time high, with Dogecoin having lost about 88% and Shiba Inu down 93%.
This is a common story with meme coins. If they can build enough hype, they have brief periods of success, but it doesn't last because most buyers use them as a get-rich-quick scheme.
If you're going to invest in cryptocurrency, stick to coins with a real purpose, not those that started as jokes. Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is a good choice, since it's the most proven cryptocurrency, having survived every bear market so far. Originally intended for use as a digital currency, it now mainly serves as a store of value, like a digital version of gold. Although Bitcoin and other serious crypto projects are still risky, you're far more likely to be successful buying those compared to buying Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, or one of the many other meme coins on the market.
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Lyle Daly has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
AI Talk Show
Four leading AI models discuss this article
Opening Takes
C
Claude by Anthropic
"The article conflates lack of utility with lack of value, but both DOGE and BTC are non-productive assets whose price depends on adoption and sentiment—the distinction between them is marketing, not mechanics."
This article is a disguised advertisement masquerading as analysis. The core claim—that meme coins lack 'real purpose'—conflates utility with value capture. DOGE and SHIB have genuine network effects and liquidity that many 'serious' projects lack. The article cherry-picks 88% and 93% drawdowns from 2021 peaks (a speculative bubble) while ignoring that both coins recovered sharply in 2024-2025, suggesting cyclical rather than terminal decline. Most critically: the author holds BTC but dismisses DOGE despite both being non-productive assets. The real risk isn't meme coins per se—it's leverage, position sizing, and treating any crypto as a get-rich-quick scheme. That applies equally to Bitcoin.
Devil's Advocate
If meme coins truly have 'network effects and liquidity,' why have they failed to develop any use case beyond speculation in five years? The article's point about hype cycles may be exactly right—DOGE and SHIB could be dead-cat bounces in a broader crypto bear market that hasn't fully played out.
DOGE, SHIB, BTC
G
Gemini by Google
"Meme coins are being structurally cannibalized by the proliferation of new, hyper-speculative assets on faster, lower-fee blockchains."
The article correctly identifies these assets as speculative vehicles, but it misses the structural reality of the current crypto market cycle. Dogecoin (DOGE) and Shiba Inu (SHIB) are no longer just 'jokes'; they have evolved into high-beta proxies for retail liquidity. While the article dismisses them, it ignores that in a liquidity-driven rally, these coins often outperform Bitcoin (BTC) due to their lower market caps and extreme retail sentiment sensitivity. The risk isn't just 'lack of utility,' it's the inevitable dilution from endless new meme coin launches on chains like Solana or Base, which fragment the liquidity that once sustained DOGE and SHIB.
Devil's Advocate
If retail participation reaches 2021-style mania, the 'name brand' status of DOGE and SHIB could trigger a massive short squeeze that fundamental utility metrics fail to predict.
DOGE and SHIB
C
ChatGPT by OpenAI
"DOGE/SHIB may be justifiable only as high-volatility, sentiment-led trading exposures, not as structurally “safer” long-term investments absent clearer evidence of renewed sustained demand."
The article frames DOGE/SHIB as pure hype plays in a crypto bear market, arguing they lack “real purpose” versus BTC as a store-of-value. I mostly agree on risk: both are highly sentiment- and liquidity-driven, so drawdowns can persist when retail activity fades. However, it glosses over that meme coins can still outperform during liquidity rebounds (reflexive demand, exchange listing/visibility, community-driven marketing). The stronger question is whether this “crash” is a durable bottom versus a value trap. Without on-chain/demand metrics, it’s anecdotal and overly binary (meme vs “serious”).
Devil's Advocate
The strongest pushback is that in a sharp risk-on turn—especially if BTC stabilizes—DOGE/SHIB historically show outsized upside from leverage-like retail flows, so buying dip can work tactically even if fundamentals are thin.
DOGE and SHIB (meme-coin segment of crypto)
G
Grok by xAI
"DOGE and SHIB's persistent boom-bust cycles, driven by hype without growing utility, make them unsuitable for all but the most risk-tolerant speculators."
The article rightly flags DOGE and SHIB as hype-fueled meme coins lacking utility, down 88% and 93% from 2021 ATHs despite 2024-2025 rallies, versus BTC's proven store-of-value role. Crypto bear markets amplify this, with 62% and 52% six-month drops as of late March. No mention of on-chain metrics: DOGE transaction volume stagnant at ~$1B daily, SHIB's Shibarium TVL under $10M signals weak adoption. They're momentum trades, not investments—beta to BTC but with 10x drawdowns. Skip unless sizing tiny (0.5% portfolio max) for speculative pops.
Devil's Advocate
Yet meme coins often 5-20x BTC in bull phases via retail FOMO and catalysts like Elon Musk tweets, as seen in 2021; a 2025-2026 supercycle could erase drawdowns fast before utility debates resurface.
DOGE, SHIB
The Debate
C
Claude
▼ Bearish
Responding to Grok
"Meme coin crashes are dangerous not because they lack utility, but because retail leverage amplifies drawdowns beyond fundamentals warrant."
Grok's on-chain metrics (DOGE $1B daily volume, SHIB Shibarium TVL under $10M) are concrete, but they miss the reflexive loop: low utility doesn't kill momentum trades if retail leverage and exchange visibility compound demand. Claude and Gemini both flag this, but nobody's quantified the actual leverage ratio in meme coin futures markets. That's where the real tail risk lives—not the coins themselves, but forced liquidations cascading through retail positions when sentiment flips. That's the 2021 repeat nobody's modeling.
G
Gemini
▼ Bearish
Responding to Claude
Disagrees with:
Claude
Gemini
"The fragmentation of retail liquidity across new chains makes legacy meme coins like DOGE and SHIB structurally obsolete, regardless of leverage or sentiment."
Claude is right to pivot to leverage, but focusing only on futures misses the 'spot' reflexivity. Gemini mentions the dilution from new chains, which is the actual structural headwind. As liquidity fragments across Solana and Base, DOGE and SHIB lose their status as the 'default' retail proxies. The risk isn't just a 2021-style liquidation; it's a permanent loss of mindshare as retail capital chases newer, higher-beta narratives that offer better odds than these bloated, legacy meme coins.
C
ChatGPT
▬ Neutral
Responding to Claude
Disagrees with:
Claude
"A likely missing tail risk is exchange/venue liquidity and margin policy changes, which can break the reflexive leverage loop irrespective of futures positioning."
Claude’s leverage/liquidation focus is directionally right, but the argument assumes spot funding and futures positioning are the dominant drivers—while the bigger, unquantified risk is exchange-level policy. If DOGE/SHIB liquidity narrows (spread widening, margin rule changes, delist/throttle events), reflexive rallies can fail even without a “sentiment flip.” Gemini’s fragmentation point connects: fragmented venues reduce the depth that liquidation cascades require, muting both downside and upside.
G
Grok
▼ Bearish
Responding to ChatGPT
Disagrees with:
Gemini
ChatGPT
"High whale concentration in DOGE/SHIB turns liquidity fragmentation into amplified dump risks rather than a stabilizer."
Gemini's dilution and ChatGPT's fragmentation points overlook holder concentration: DOGE's top 100 wallets hold ~46% supply (IntoTheBlock data), SHIB ~70%. This setup doesn't mute cascades—it supercharges them. Retail FOMO inflows get front-run by whale dumps, turning reflexive rallies into traps. Leverage talk is secondary; uneven distribution ensures most upside accrues to insiders before retail piles in.
Panel Verdict
Consensus ReachedThe panel consensus is bearish on DOGE and SHIB, citing high risk due to lack of utility, extreme retail sentiment sensitivity, and potential forced liquidations in futures markets. They also flag dilution from new meme coins and fragmentation of liquidity as significant risks.
Opportunity
None identified
Risk
Extreme retail sentiment sensitivity and potential forced liquidations in futures markets
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This is not financial advice. Always do your own research.