Author: Virtuals Protocol

Translated by TechFlow

TechFlow Intro: Early founders often stake their entire reputation before validating market demand—making irreversible commitments even before product-market fit is proven. The “60 Days” framework introduced by Virtuals Protocol transforms this paradigm: founders build publicly for 60 days, during which capital accumulates via transaction fees and an optional Growth Allocation—but founders retain full control. At the end of the period, they may choose to commit permanently—or exit entirely and return all raised funds to token holders. This is a reversible tokenization experiment framework, enabling serious AI builders to test crypto-native distribution and monetization models without bearing irreversible risk.

Full Text Below:

Early founders are often forced to invest substantial personal and reputational capital before validating market demand. Traditional accelerators, venture capital, and token launches typically require early, binding commitments—and offer limited feedback loops.

The 60 Days Program Introduces an Experiment-Driven Pathway

Founders build publicly for 60 days while real users discover the product; capital accumulates via transaction fees and an optional Growth Allocation (GA).

At the end of the window, founders decide whether to commit. If they commit, tokens continue to exist, and raised funds unlock over time to support further growth and development. If they decline to commit, tokens are liquidated and all raised funds are returned to token holders.

The 60 Days Framework Is Built on Five Core Principles:

1. Founder Sovereignty: Founders retain full authority—until the 60-day window ends—to decide whether to commit or exit. Nothing unlocks automatically.
2. Market Testing: Demand emerges organically through real user behavior and voluntary support.
3. Reversible Design: Every launch begins in a fully reversible state. Shutdown is an expected and legitimate outcome—not a failure condition.
4. Reputation Protection: If the project liquidates, all raised funds are returned to supporters, preserving founders’ reputations intact—no permanent on-chain blemish.
5. Aligned Risk & Reward: Supporters back tangible progress—not promises. Founders access capital only upon choosing to commit. Upside and downside are transparently shared.

How the 60 Days Program Works

Each participating founder enters a 60-day public build-and-test period.

During this time, founders must:

• Regularly build and release product updates
• Engage with users and collect feedback
• Iterate, pivot, and publish progress reports
• Maintain transparent metrics
• Participate in community review

On Day 60, founders must declare one of two outcomes:

• Commit: Transition into long-term development
• Do Not Commit: If the project liquidates, all accumulated funds are refunded

Launching 60 Days

Projects can launch public tokens using a standardized bonding curve. Tokens are tradable during the build-and-test phase. Pricing adjusts dynamically based on demand. All 60 Days launches occur on the BASE network. Projects initially run in private pools. Once cumulative trading volume reaches 42,000 VIRTUAL, liquidity migrates to a Uniswap V2 pool, enabling open-market access.

Token holders participate in project milestones and performance—but remain protected via the refund mechanism if founders do not commit.

Token Economics

The 60 Days economic model is designed primarily to support founders’ long-term sustainability while aligning incentives with supporters.

It comprises three core components:

• Trading Tax
• Automated Capital Formation (ACF)
• Growth Allocation (GA)

Founders also receive stipends during the 60-day period via these mechanisms.

Trading Tax

All token trades incur a 1% fee.

• 30% allocated to the protocol
• 70% allocated to founders (“founder trading tax”)

Founders’ share is locked during the trial and released only upon commitment.

If founders do not commit, this allocation is redirected to the refund pool.

This mechanism rewards founders who complete the program—and discourages launches without commitment.

Automated Capital Formation (ACF)

ACF is an automated funding mechanism that continuously allocates capital to founders based on market participation and trading activity.

• Released ACF funds are used for operational expenses, infrastructure, and early scaling
• Unreleased ACF allocations remain locked and are excluded from refund calculations until formally released

ACF enables founders to raise capital incrementally—without relying on traditional funding rounds.

More details on ACF are available in related documentation.

Growth Allocation (GA)

Founders may optionally open a Growth Allocation (GA) pool, funded by selling up to 5% of their team’s token allocation. Participants deposit USDC to receive token allocations at a fixed, publicly declared FDV (Fully Diluted Valuation), set by the founder.

GA funds are held in escrow until the commitment decision is finalized—and are fully refunded if founders do not commit.

If founders commit, GA pool funds are subject to a mandatory six-month vesting period. Post-commitment, GA tokens vest linearly over six months.

If founders do not commit, all GA funds are refunded and vesting is canceled. This structure shields both founders and early supporters from short-term speculation.

Stipend Mechanism

To support founders during the 60-day period, stipends are provided. Every 30 days (on Day 30 and Day 60), founders receive a stipend equal to 10% of currently collected funds (from founder trading tax revenue and released ACF), capped at 5,000 USDC.

Example: Day 30 Calculation:

• Total collected funds from founder trading tax revenue and any released ACF: 35,000 USDC
• 10% calculation: 35,000 × 0.10 = 3,500 USDC
• Ceiling check: 3,500 < 5,000 ceiling
• Founder stipend payment: 3,500 USDC

Day 60 Calculation:

• Total collected funds from founder trading tax revenue and any released ACF: 58,000 USDC
• 10% calculation: 58,000 × 0.10 = 5,800 USDC
• Ceiling check: 5,800 > 5,000 ceiling
• Founder stipend payment: 5,000 USDC (ceiling reached)

At Day 60: Outcomes

Handling Founder Commitment

Founders may choose to commit at any point during the 60-day trial. Early commitment is permitted once sufficient traction and validation have been achieved.

If founders commit:

• Founder trading tax allocation is immediately released to the founder’s wallet
• Released ACF funds are unlocked
• Vesting schedule for Growth Allocation (if applicable) begins
• Participant allocations take effect
• Long-term infrastructure and distribution support are activated
• The project transitions to sustained development

Commitment signals the founder’s readiness to pursue long-term execution and accountability.

Pro-Rata Allocation of Growth Allocation

Allocations are distributed pro rata based on each participant’s contribution to the Growth Allocation pool. If the pool is oversubscribed, allocations are scaled proportionally, and any unused USDC is automatically refunded.

Pro-Rata Allocation Calculation

Each participant receives a pro-rata allocation based on their USDC contribution:

Example

Available Growth Allocation pool: 50,000 tokens

GA token price: $0.20 per token

Maximum possible raise: 50,000 × $0.20 = $10,000 USDC

Total USDC committed by all participants: $15,000 USDC

Participant Contribution Example

Alice, commits $5,000 | requests 25,000 tokens at $0.20

Bob, commits $4,000 | requests 20,000 tokens at $0.20

Carol, commits $3,500 | requests 17,500 tokens at $0.20

Dave, commits $2,500 | requests 12,500 tokens at $0.20

Total: $15,000 USDC | requested 75,000 tokens

Since participants requested 75,000 tokens but only 50,000 are available, the pool is oversubscribed by 150% (75,000 ÷ 50,000).

All participants receive tokens at the same fixed price of $0.20 per token.

Pro-Rata Allocation Example

Alice:

Proportion: $5,000 ÷ $15,000 = 33.33%

Token allocation: 50,000 × 0.3333 = 16,667 tokens

USDC used: 16,667 × $0.20 = $3,333

Refund: $1,667 USDC

Bob:

Proportion: $4,000 ÷ $15,000 = 26.67%

Token allocation: 50,000 × 0.2667 = 13,333 tokens

USDC used: 13,333 × $0.20 = $2,667

Refund: $1,333 USDC

Carol:

Proportion: $3,500 ÷ $15,000 = 23.33%

Token allocation: 50,000 × 0.2333 = 11,667 tokens

USDC used: 11,667 × $0.20 = $2,333

Refund: $1,167 USDC

Dave:

Proportion: $2,500 ÷ $15,000 = 16.67%

Token allocation: 50,000 × 0.1667 = 8,333 tokens

USDC used: 8,333 × $0.20 = $1,667

Refund: $833 USDC

Handling Founder Non-Commitment

If founders do not commit:

• The trial period ends
• The liquidity pool is emptied
• Token issuance halts
• The refund mechanism is triggered
• Accumulated funds are distributed to eligible token holders

In this case, the project is formally closed within the 60 Days framework, with no further capital release.

Refund Mechanism

If founders do not commit, remaining funds are distributed from the accumulated fund pool to eligible token holders.

Accumulated Funds Come From Three Sources:

Accumulated funds = Released ACF funds + Founder trading tax + Remaining $VIRTUAL in LP

Founder trading tax = 70% of the 1% trading fee collected

How Refunds Are Calculated

Total refunds consist of funds from two sources:

Refund from Released ACF Funds and Founder Trading Tax

This portion is calculated from released ACF funds and founder trading tax (i.e., 70% of collected token trading fees). Your share is based on your proportion of eligible holdings:

Refund (Released ACF + Founder Trading Tax) = (Your token holdings / Eligible holdings) × (Released ACF funds + Founder trading tax)

Refund from Liquidity Pool ($VIRTUAL)

This portion is calculated from the remaining $VIRTUAL in the liquidity pool (LP). Your share is based on total eligible holdings—including the team’s initial purchase:

Refund (LP $VIRTUAL) = (Your token holdings / Eligible holdings including team’s initial purchase) × Remaining $VIRTUAL in LP

Eligible Holdings

Only the following balances are included in refund calculations:

• Tokens purchased via public sale
• Ecosystem airdrops held until snapshot

Excluded From Refund

The following are excluded:

• Team reserve tokens
• Unreleased ACF allocations
• Tokens acquired via buybacks

Tokens obtained from the team’s initial purchase qualify for refund only from the liquidity pool portion—and are not eligible for ACF or trading tax refunds.

Important Notes

⚠️ Refunds are distributed pro rata based on relative ownership at the time of snapshot.

⚠️ As fund balances may fluctuate during the 60-day period, full refunds are not guaranteed.

⚠️ Please review project details and risks before participating.

Refunds depend on available funds and are not guaranteed in full.

Reducing Risk in Market Building

For credible AI founders, launching tokens has historically required disproportionate reputational exposure. Traditional models enforce early, irreversible commitments before product-market validation is complete. Once launched, expectations harden, capital unlocks immediately regardless of outcome, and reputational consequences persist indefinitely.

This dynamic discourages serious builders.

The 60 Days framework aims to meaningfully reduce this risk.

It establishes a structured trial window where experimentation is expected, reversibility is built-in, and commitment remains voluntary. Founders can test distribution, validate demand, and iterate rapidly—without permanently anchoring their reputation to an unfinished product. Capital accumulates transparently, yet access to it remains contingent on an explicit commitment decision.

This is especially critical for top-tier AI teams building agent infrastructure, robotics systems, or coordination layers. It empowers them to leverage crypto-native distribution and monetization—without shouldering irreversible downside risk at the earliest stages of research and product development.

In turn, supporters back observable progress—not static promises. If conviction strengthens, the project transitions to sustained development. If conviction wanes, funds are returned and reputational damage is minimized.

The 60 Days framework redefines tokenization—not as a one-way launch event, but as a reversible experiment framework.

By doing so, it aligns capital formation with how serious AI innovation actually unfolds: iteratively, publicly, responsibly, and conditionally.

aGDP.