From Speculation to On-Chain Income Infrastructure: Meta Earth’s Long-Term Vision with its UBI-Featured Tokenomics

Over the past decade or more, the crypto world has been driven almost entirely by price sentiment.

In bull markets, timelines are flooded with stories about “2×, 10×, 100× gains” and “financial freedom.” But when the bears arrive, prices crash to zero, projects fall silent, and “long-termism” becomes nothing more than a post-hoc justification — it sounds right in hindsight, but rarely translates into reality.

In that atmosphere, price has become the default axis by which most people understand blockchain economics. Whether blockchain has genuinely improved people’s lives, or produced anything in the real world that’s “truly dependable” over the long term, is often relegated to the margins.

Meta Earth (ME Network) asks the question differently: If you strip away the noise of price volatility, what do you still want from blockchain?

For us, a healthy public chain should feel more like a global income infrastructure: A system that ties real identities, continuous incentives, and daily earnings together, so that real people can receive stable, predictable value over the long term — not just bet on a few lucky market cycles.

This article aims to do three things:

• Clarify why we need to shift from “speculative gameplay” to “income infrastructure”;
• Break down how MEC’s token design and UBI mechanism actually work;
• Lay out the potential challenges and uncertainties this model could face.

I. Beyond Speculative Design: From “Who Holds the Last Bag” to “Infrastructure for Everyone”

Let’s begin by unpacking an implicit assumption that underlies most public blockchain economic models.

In the vast majority of these models, there’s an unspoken premise: for a network to appear “active,” it needs a high volume of transactions — and a large share of that activity tends to come from speculation.

So the on-chain reality typically looks something like this:

• During price rallies, on-chain activity, total value locked (TVL), and transaction counts all surge;
• When prices decline, participants oscillate between short-term trading strategies and hoping for the next narrative to revive sentiment;
• A carousel of “plays,” yield farms, and gimmicks take center stage, while projects deeply tied to real-world utility remain a small minority.

Within this framework, many on-chain behaviors are still essentially rehearsals around the price line. Terms like “real usage,” “long-term value,” and “improving lives” show up in whitepapers, pitch decks, and interviews — but for most users’ everyday decision-making, they are not the first considerations.

Meta Earth has a fundamentally different starting point. We began by asking three core questions:

1. What counts as “meaningful on-chain income” for ordinary people?
2. Can that income be tied to a real, verifiable identity, rather than to “who reacts fastest”?
3. On that basis, how should token value, issuance, and distribution rules be redesigned?

MEC was not designed to be “a token that’s easier to trade.” Instead, it was conceived as the economic framework centered on long-term participation and income rights. As we like to summarize it internally:

“Bind real people, digital identity, and on-chain income together into a global income network.”

Every subsequent layer of technology, identity logic, and economic design unfolds outward from this goal.

II. ME Network’s Underlying Architecture: Laying the Right Foundation

To understand this economic model, we first need to look at how the foundation of this chain is constructed.

1. Modular Architecture: Decoupling Execution, Settlement, and Data Availability
ME Network adopts modular architecture, breaking the network into three principal layers:

1. Execution Layer (RollApp) This is where applications actually run. Different business logic can be deployed on independent Rollups, processing in parallel instead of congesting a single chain.
2. Settlement Layer (ME-Hub) This layer acts as the “clearing center and ledger referee.” It finalizes and reconciles the states and transaction results from multiple RollApps, ensuring consistency across them.
3. Data Availability Layer (ME-DA) A dedicated infrastructure for storing and making transaction data available and verifiable, so that execution layers can run securely knowing data can always be accessed and validated.

The benefits of this separation are straightforward:

• Performance: Multiple Rollups can execute in parallel, enabling much higher throughput than a monolithic chain.
• Cost Efficiency: Computation and storage are decoupled, allowing each layer to scale independently based on its needs.
• Future Expansion: The structure leaves room for more complex cross-chain use cases and real-world asset (RWA) applications down the road.

In simple terms, this architecture is built on the assumption that many real-world use cases will ultimately run on the network, rather than the chain merely serving as a “dedicated track” for a single narrative.

2. ME ID: Not Just an “Account System,” But an “Income Identity”

When discussing income, we cannot avoid an age-old question:

How do you verify that “one account corresponds to one real person”?

If an incentive mechanism fails to distinguish between real individuals and bot accounts, all subsequent efforts toward “fair distribution” and “long-term benefits” will be led astray.

Therefore, ME Network has built a decentralized identity protocol — ME ID — from the very beginning. Through a compliant identity verification process (currently primarily based on Real Person Verification, with more privacy-friendly ZK-DID solutions to be gradually introduced in the future), it aims to ensure:

• Each verified ME ID corresponds to one natural person in the real world;
• Unconditional Basic Income (UBI), incentives, and governance weight are all recorded and distributed with this identity as the unit.

In this design, the ME ID is not a simple “login method” nor a “membership number”. Instead, it is more akin to:

• Your “income account” within the network;
• The foundation for you to participate in governance, enjoy rights, and assume responsibilities.

3. MEC: The Multiple Roles Behind One Token

Built around such a network, MEC is entrusted with several layers of functions:

• As the foundational token for network usage: Covering Gas fees and operational costs;
• As a staking asset: Safeguarding the security and stability of infrastructure such as nodes and Rollups;
• As governance weight: Playing a role in future decisions regarding protocol parameter adjustments, upgrades, and other key matters;
• More importantly, as the core unit for on-chain revenue and incentive distribution.

The total supply of MEC is set at 20 billion tokens. Among this, 10 billion tokens will be distributed in a “one token per person” model — corresponding to the potential maximum coverage of the global population — serving as the foundational income right for permanent staking. The remaining 10 billion tokens will be gradually released into circulation and allocated to various incentive programs.

Of this circulating portion of MEC, the vast majority is currently stored in node vaults across different regions, functioning as an incentive pool for community and ecosystem development. A significant share of this pool has been earmarked for the long-term incentive fund, dedicated to network development over cycles of a decade or even longer — rather than being “spent up in just one or two campaigns.”

III. “One MEC per Person” and UBI: Codifying Rights on the Chain

When it comes to ME Network’s economic model, there are three key design elements that stand out.

1. One Permanently Staked MEC: Your “Foundational Income Right”
Within ME Network, every user who completes ME ID verification is entitled to the permanent staking benefit of 1 MEC. It is important to clarify: This 1 MEC is not staked only when you complete your ME ID; instead, starting from the genesis block, 10 billion “permanently staked MEC tokens” were locked into the mainnet in one go, and the entire batch has remained in staking ever since.

When you pass ME ID verification, what the system does is not “stake a new MEC on your behalf.” Rather, from this pre-existing pool of permanently staked MEC, it explicitly binds the right to earnings of 1 MEC to your ME ID.

This MEC linked to you has two key characteristics:

• It has been in permanent staking since the network’s genesis and can never be unstaked;
• It cannot be transferred or traded, and belongs exclusively to the individual associated with this ME ID.

What does this mean?

You can think of it this way: The moment you complete your ME ID, you claim a “foundational income right certificate” on the chain — one that was already hardcoded into the network’s underlying logic. This is the starting point of UBI.

Subsequently, based on the network’s overall staking returns, the value generated by on-chain businesses, andthe pre-defined incentive rules, this permanently staked MEC (with its earnings right bound to you) will continuously generate returns, forming a long-term, rule-based income curve.

2. Decentralized Release + Annual Halving: Extending the Time Horizon
Beyond the 10 billion MEC allocated for the “one MEC per person” permanent staking, the remaining 100 billion circulating MEC will be distributed gradually through staking rewards and ecosystem incentives, following a pre-programmed rhythm encoded in the protocol.

The distribution schedule was fixed at the network’s genesis:

• In the 1st year, 5 billion MEC will be released;
• From the 2nd year onward, the annual release volume will be halved from the previous year’s distribution — 2.5 billion MEC in the 2nd year, 1.25 billion MEC in the 3rd year, and so on — until all 100 billion circulating MEC are fully distributed in accordance with the predefined curve.

While this design appears to adopt the familiar “halving” framework in crypto space, our primary focus lies in two other key objectives:

• In the early stages of the network: Provide sufficient incentives to truly mobilize nodes, developers, and the community;
• As the network matures: Gradually shift the focus from “how many tokens are issued” to “how much value on-chain revenue-generating products and real-world businesses actually create.”

Therefore, the “halving” mechanism here is more about using a predictable, protocol-encoded distribution curve to provide long-term participants with a clear timeline — not about hyping up a price narrative.

3. More Than Just “Passive Earnings”: An Incentive Design with Multiple Entry Points

Within the ME Pass entry point, users can earn MEC incentives through various methods:

• Completing daily check-ins;
• Engaging in staking and restaking;
• Participating in community activities and governance;
• Inviting new users to complete ME ID verification;
• Joining specific activities (e.g., monthly airdrops, thematic tasks), and more.

By design, we intentionally separate two key components:

• Basic UBI earnings: As long as you hold a verified ME ID, you are entitled to a stable income curve over time;
• Additional earnings from active participation: The more effort you invest, the more you can earn — and this “extra income” is directly tied to ecosystem development and your contributions.

In this way, on-chain income is no longer merely “the system distributing some tokens to you.” Instead, it evolves into a combination of: foundational rights + rewards for action.

IV. From “A Little MEC Every Day” to “A Planned Life Curve”

On the surface, ME Network may seem like nothing more than an incentive system that provides “daily MEC deposits.” But what truly matters is what this income is ultimately aligned with.

1. Income is Tied to Network Growth, Not Market Sentiment
Within ME’s design, incentive distribution primarily depends on three factors:

• Whether you hold a valid, unique ME ID;
• Whether you contribute to the network’s security through actions like staking or operating nodes;
• Whether you actually use and build the ecosystem — such as engaging with DApps, managing local communities, or contributing content.

In other words, on-chain income is tied to real individuals and genuine actions, rather than simply rewarding “who trades more or engages in more short-term speculation.” Prices will, of course, still fluctuate, but the logic of the incentives themselves is intended to stay as independent as possible from the “sentiment curve” and instead remain anchored to the “participation curve.”

2. Aligning On-Chain Businesses with Real-Life Needs

From a longer-term perspective, ME Network is not content with merely functioning as a “token-distribution product.” Instead, we aim to align this UBI + incentive mechanism with several types of real-world needs:

• RWA and Compliant Financial Scenarios Modular Rollups, combined with ME ID, can provide a relatively stable infrastructure for on-chain compliant assets, profit distribution, and risk isolation. Income is no longer just a string of numbers within the chain, but can map real-world assets.
• Local Community Economies Built Around UBI When a region has enough households steadily receiving basic income through ME ID verification, local consumption, mutual aid, and even financial services will have the opportunity to be redesigned based on this foundation.
• More Daily-Oriented Web3 Applications Task platforms, content platforms, offline service markets, local DAOs… Any scenario that can be linked to identity and income has the potential to become a “RollApp on ME.”

In an ideal state, ME Network is not a “token-issuing chain,” but an application network that supports various initiatives to “reconstruct life around income.”

V. Risk Control and Uncertainties: Three Sets of Issues We Must Confront Head-On

As long as we talk about the “long term,” it’s impossible to pretend this design is free of risks. ME Network has at least three key areas that require long-term attention and monitoring.

1. The Pace of Real Demand Implementation Determines the Longevity of the Narrative

It is true that UBI (Unconditional Basic Income) and incentives can attract early users — and this is a practical reality. However, there is an unavoidable question: If there are not enough on-chain businesses and real-world scenarios, who will underpin this income system? If the network remains trapped in the cycle of “token issuance → distribution → secondary market circulation,” lacking the accumulation of real assets and businesses, then no matter how sophisticated the incentive curve is, it will eventually devolve into a distorted “high-inflation model.”

Therefore, in practice, we must make efforts in two directions simultaneously:

• On one hand, use UBI and incentives to attract real users, building ME into a warm, sticky network;
• On the other hand, integrate scenarios such as RWA (Real-World Assets), fair finance, local public welfare, and community economies into the network as quickly as possible — so that “income” corresponds to real economic activities, rather than just account balances.

2. Long-Term Balance Between Issuance, Circulation, and Demand

Even with a halving mechanism, the token economy still faces a set of longstanding challenges:

• Will the issuance pace be too fast, causing the market to struggle to absorb new supply?
• When will the ratio between staked and circulating tokens reach a relatively healthy structure?
• Can the real demand created within the ecosystem offset part of the new issuance?

It is unlikely that we can provide standard answers to these questions on day one. A more practical approach is to retain a certain degree of governance flexibility under clear rules — allowing the community to make micro-adjustments based on data feedback, rather than locking all parameters in place permanently from day one.

3. Global Compliance and Differences in Identity Verification

The advantage of ME ID is clear: one real individual corresponds to one on-chain identity, laying the foundation for fair distribution. However, this also places us in a complex regulatory environment:

• Requirements for identity verification and data retention rules vary significantly across countries;
• Some regions have stricter regulatory frameworks for the combination of “tokens + incentives + identity”;
• Social consensus around privacy protection is also constantly evolving.

In this regard, we need to maintain a long-term balance between three goals:

1. Respect local regulatory requirements and avoid operating in a “gray area”;
2. Protect user privacy and data security, ensuring the identity protocol is trustworthy;
3. Meanwhile, maintain the global uniformity and scalability of ME ID, preventing fragmentation.

This is not a problem that can be solved in a few months — it is more like a “long-term endeavor” that requires continuous adaptation.

VI. Conclusion: Transforming Blockchain from a “Sentiment-Driven Trading Venue” to a “Reliable Infrastructure”

Today, while many projects still craft narratives around short-term prices and trading data, Meta Earth has chosen a relatively “against-the-trend” proposition:

Can we make “on-chain income” a part that ordinary people can truly rely on for the long term?

To this end, we have done a few things that may not be so pleasing to short-term market sentiment:

• Placing “real identity (ME ID)” at the starting point of value distribution, rather than only focusing on wallet addresses;
• Using clear long-term incentives and halving curves to align the time horizons of participants, rather than designing around just one or two market rallies;
• In the design of the token economy, deliberately tying itself to scenarios such as RWA (Real-World Assets), local community economies, and fair finance — instead of solely chasing on-chain trading activity.

This path will not be easy, nor can it be accomplished overnight. But we believe that when market sentiments gradually subside, the only networks that will truly remain are those that can continuously create real-world value. Meta Earth aspires to be one of them: a global income infrastructure where on-chain income, real identity, and long-term participation are firmly integrated.

If you also find yourself asking:

• Can blockchain bring more stable and predictable changes to the lives of ordinary people?
• Can the token economy break out of the repeated cycle of “narrative — bubble — liquidation”?

Then consider starting with a few small steps:

• Spend a little time understanding ME’s architecture and economic model
• Complete your own ME ID and claim that MEC inscribed on the chain;
• Adopt a longer time horizon to observe, participate in, and even question this experiment centered on “on-chain income infrastructure.”

This is no longer a game solely defined by price curves — it is a long-term dialogue about whether technology can truly stand on the side of ordinary people.

About Meta Earth

Meta Earth (ME) is based on a modular, high-performance, infinitely scalable multi-dimensional fusion underlying value network — ME Network, which supports the high-concurrency big data processing needs of traditional industrial applications.

And through an encrypted DID (Decentralized Identifier) system — ME ID & ME Pass which can effectively protect user privacy data, and a co-construction & co-governance mechanism which can fully reflect personal sovereignty and equality for all, as well as an economic model which can guarantee UBI (Unconditional Basic Income) without any distinction, Meta Earth is fully dedicated to enhancing happiness for a better life and maintaining ecological balance to promote sustainability.

If you want to receive more airdrops or rewards, please download the ME Pass and complete the KYC. See more on the poster! 👇👇👇

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