If Nike only had the name and swoosh—saying “it symbolizes strength, speed, and achievement” but never released any shoes, clothing, or accessories—who would buy into the brand? It’s hard to imagine, since the brand has already become so symbolic, but if Nike never made any products and was launched as a memecoin, it probably wouldn’t do well. (calm down, nobody's claiming to be Nike here—this is just an illustration!)
Brands gain meaning because they signify real products and utility. Memecoins can stay memes if they wish, but thinking about product lines under a brand is what can transform an average meme into a potentially great brand.
In a centralized company, you typically develop multiple product lines in-house. That central entity:
Retains full control,
Allocates budget and resources,
And captures all the upside.
Even in DAOs or permissionless projects like Nouns, there’s still a central treasury and a consensus about what’s “core.” So while these structures may appear decentralized, there’s typically a central pot of funds and a small group deciding how to distribute them.
A truly decentralized brand breaks from that model. Rather than relying on a central treasury (which inevitably introduces a central point of control), anyone should be able to:
Launch a new project under the brand’s umbrella,
Capture a lot of the upside from their own project,
While still benefiting all token holders of the “core” brand.
It’s the difference between one single corporate entity producing new products vs. having a network of independent creators, each building their own “product lines” that align around the same brand ethos and token.
Faster Growth Through Creative Freedom
When every potential builder needs a grant or treasury vote, projects can bottleneck. But if anyone can spin up a new idea—mint a token, issue NFTs, or introduce a product—momentum can grow exponentially.
Distributed Incentives
Builders need motivation, and financial upside is a strong one. Allowing each sub-project to keep a large portion of its own revenue or tokens encourages them to do their best work. At the same time, we can create mechanisms to ensure that success also bounces back to the main brand’s token holders.
Resilience & Diversity
One big “official” project can fail, but if dozens of smaller projects are experimenting, the brand is far more resilient.
For a brand like $LUM (Luminous)—built around a token that doesn’t have a central treasury—mechanisms must be baked into each sub-project’s token or product structure. Here are a few approaches:
Liquidity Pairing and Locking
When launching a new token, you can create an LP (liquidity pool) position with $LUM. This ensures that when one token gains traction, it positively affects the other—and the sub-project will accumulate $LUM from fees. Builders might even lock this LP position for a fixed period to show long-term commitment.
Minting & Buybacks
If a sub-project mints NFTs in ETH, for example, a portion of that ETH can go into buying back the original token—then potentially staking it or adding it to a liquidity pool.
A Structured Launchpad
A model like Virtuals can coordinate new product launches—especially if they’re of a certain type (e.g., AI agents). Each new project might have its own token, minted or sold in a way that references or benefits the original brand token.
Staking Rewards
Offer staking rewards for people who hold or provide liquidity for both tokens (the new sub-token and the original). This creates a direct incentive for communities to support each other’s token economies. However, it doesn’t directly benefit all token holders (just those who stake), and unless there is a mechanism to replenish the rewards pool it isn't a good model for long term incentive alignment.
Within the Luminous ecosystem, $Luminary is an early example of this decentralized-brand approach. At first, it might look like it’s diluting focus—people could buy Luminary instead of LUM. And yes, “that’s not how everyone else does it.” But over time, if each new sub-project reaches new users and communities, the overall ecosystem grows.
You can launch a sub-project, too—it’s free and open to anyone.
Each new sub-project—whether it’s an NFT, an AI agent, or something else—designs its own method of alignment with Luminous. This lets the builder capture direct upside while still giving Luminous token holders a share in that growth.
It Scales
Removing the need for a central treasury to greenlight every proposal opens the floodgates for innovation. Anyone can spin up a “product line,” experiment with new mechanics, and build a following.
It’s More Resilient
Rather than placing all bets on one “official” project, the ecosystem thrives as a constellation of sub-projects. Sure, many might fail—but the ones that succeed bring more attention (and value) back to Luminous.
It’s Truly Decentralized
Many projects claim decentralization yet lean on a single pot of treasury funds. Here, the brand identity and ecosystem are the draw. Builders come in, launch their projects, and prove their worth to the market—no single entity can gatekeep or hold the brand hostage.
As more projects follow this path I think we’ll see a new wave of decentralized brands. They’ll be fluid, open to anyone with a compelling idea, and powered by incentives instead of top-down budgets.
The Luminous ecosystem can provide:
The initial spark (the $LUM token and meme: 1st AI-to-AI token launch),
Infrastructure (easy-to-use smart contracts, launchpads, staking solutions, guidelines for alignment mechanisms),
And a community ethos that welcomes experimentation and cooperation between projects.
If you’re a builder, creator, or dreamer, Luminous offers you the chance to launch your own product line within an emerging decentralized brand—without needing permission. Whether you’re designing an NFT drop, coding an AI agent, or inventing a whole new token with fresh mechanics, the structure is here to benefit both you and the Luminous community.
Submissions are open now for the Agenetic Contest on Jokerace.
You don’t need to be a developer or start with a full team—just imagine a compelling idea and pitch it. If it resonates, you can spend the next month forming a team and building an MVP.
The era of truly decentralized brands—where anyone can build, and everyone can benefit—is just beginning. It’s an ecosystem, not an empire. I’m excited to see what you create next!
