In November 2021, a decentralized autonomous organization called ConstitutionDAO ignited a massive crowdfunding campaign on the Ethereum blockchain, aiming to bid on one of 13 original copies of the United States Constitution at a Sotheby's auction. Within just over a week, more than 17,000 contributors raised approximately $47 million in ETH via the Juicebox platform. However, the DAO ultimately lost the auction to billionaire hedge fund CEO Ken Griffin, who secured the artifact with a winning bid of $43.2 million. ConstitutionDAO concluded it lacked sufficient funds to manage the constitution and promptly dissolved. Despite the DAO's closure, its governance token PEOPLE unexpectedly thrived as a meme coin, remaining actively traded on major exchanges.
The Rise and Fall of ConstitutionDAO
Founded by a core group of about 30 individuals, including Jonah Erlich, ConstitutionDAO originated from a social media meme that evolved after Sotheby's announced the auction. The team posted its first tweet on November 12, just six days before the auction. The mission went viral, and the DAO's Discord server quickly amassed over 20,000 members. After the failed bid, the founders burned the multi-signature wallet to prevent further minting or fundraising. They offered token holders two options: claim unclaimed PEOPLE tokens via Juicebox, or redeem PEOPLE for ETH at a ratio of 1 ETH : 1,000,000 PEOPLE. Yet most traders chose to hold and trade the token, transforming it into a pure speculative asset driven by community sentiment.
PEOPLE Token Today: Governance Relic Turned Meme Asset
The circulating supply of PEOPLE stands at 5.06 billion, equal to its maximum supply. According to KuCoin data, the all-time high price was $0.19, with the current price down 96.4% from that peak. Conversely, the all-time low was near zero, and the current price has surged 839.6% from the bottom. Such volatility stems entirely from market speculation rather than fundamentals. Originally, PEOPLE was designed as a governance token that would have allowed holders to vote on where to display the constitution had the DAO won. Presently, its utility is limited to trading and, on some platforms like KuCoin, lending for passive income. A faction of holders remains optimistic that the DAO might be revived with a new purpose, which could reignite demand for PEOPLE.
Market Impact and Risk Assessment
ConstitutionDAO's story underscores both the power of crypto community mobilization and the fragility of single-purpose DAOs. PEOPLE's continued trading activity demonstrates the resilience of meme coins — even absent fundamental value, social consensus and FOMO can drive significant price action. However, investors face extreme risk: the token's price is highly sentiment-driven, with no intrinsic backing. A potential DAO revival could offer upside, but prolonged inactivity may lead to further decline toward zero. Moreover, the open redemption channel theoretically allows large-scale conversion to ETH, which could drain liquidity. Overall, PEOPLE serves as a unique historical experiment and a barometer for meme coin market sentiment. As of July 2026, the token maintains daily trading volumes in the millions of dollars on exchanges like KuCoin, appealing to high-risk speculators but cautioning value investors to tread carefully.