Hunter Biden-linked meme coin LAPTOP is set to start trading on Coinbase-backed Base on Sept. 9, with trading expected to open at around 8 a.m. Eastern Time, or about 20:00 Beijing time.
In an interview with Tucker Carlson, Hunter Biden did not hide his interest in crypto. He said he was interested in making money and also mentioned legal fees. Market commentary cited in the report said most token launches are driven by the goal of making money as quickly as possible.
The project narrative is not landing with the market
On its official website, the token frames the "laptop" theme as an attempt to take back a weapon once used by others and turn it into its own meme. An airdrop targeting loss-making TRUMP addresses has also been interpreted by critics as a mix of political revenge and user acquisition.
That pitch has not won over much of crypto. Mario Nawfal, a host on X, mocked the token in a post: 「This laptop went from ‘Russian disinformation’ to a blockchain asset. America really knows how to recycle trash.」 The post became one of the most widely circulated reactions.
Why the community is pushing back
The objections have been specific rather than vague.
- The team holds 30% of the supply, which many traders see as a founder allocation rather than a community coin structure.
- For critics, TRUMP already showed how political celebrity tokens can turn retail buyers into exit liquidity, and another one looks like a second season of the same show.
- By turning one of Hunter Biden’s most controversial public symbols directly into the ticker, the token is seen by some not as redemption, but as a way to productize notoriety.
On-chain opinion leaders have been notably aligned in distancing themselves from the launch.
Base, Cobie and major voices all moved to clarify their position
Ansem released a 13-minute video titled thoughts on memecoins & hunter biden's laptop coin. It drew more than 1 million views, but he did not tell followers to buy the token.
Base creator Jesse Pollak said the team had previously been in contact with Base, but added: 「we consciously decided not to participate in the design or promotion」. He said politics is too complex and should not be something they try to steer, while also noting that Base is a permissionless network where anyone can build.
Cobie drew the line twice in public. He said this was not a joint issuance involving Hunter, Jesse, Coinbase, or Base. He also said Jesse and Coinbase cannot control who launches a token on Base, and that such activity should not be read as an endorsement.
Crypto trader Pentosh1 delivered one of the most quoted reactions: 「We finally drew the line at Hunter Biden's meme coin.」
The same critics also kept away from TRUMP
In the report, LAPTOP is presented not as an isolated case, but as the latest test of the market’s tolerance for political meme coins.
Cobie said that when TRUMP launched, some people mocked him for staying quiet. His response was that this kind of theme did not leave much room for any particularly unique take. He also argued that judged by founder ownership ratios, the token would not meet normal listing standards.
Ansem was blunter. In his view, crypto Twitter might not even take another Trump family coin at this point, and celebrity-token hype often fades after only a few hours.
Lyn Alden had already described the Trump and Melania token launches in January 2025 as 「the final cynical product of the cycle — a digital casino without even the thin disguise of product or technology.」
Even platforms pulled back
The distancing has not been limited to traders and commentators.
Pump.fun’s official account had posted: 「Hunter Biden's $LAPTOP is coming soon. Launching on Base Wednesday 9th September」, using the Base-based token to drive traffic to its app. After being criticized for siding with extractive actors, the post was quickly deleted.
A related Kraken post was also deleted after screenshots circulated. MarketBubble and other podcasts declined interview requests and publicly took a negative view.
The reason given in the report was simple: the community backlash was strong enough that anyone publicly supporting the token risked being grouped with yet another political extraction play.
TRUMP’s losses still shape the backdrop
That caution is being measured against recent precedent. TRUMP is down about 97% from its high, and nearly 1 million addresses are estimated to be sitting on a combined $3.8 billion in losses. Those numbers continue to frame how traders look at the next politically branded token.
LAPTOP looks like a heavily watched pre-launch trade, not a conviction trade
At this stage, LAPTOP looks more like a high-attention prelaunch market than a token backed by broad conviction. The launch date has already been fixed, the contract and website have circulated, copycat versions have already traded in the millions of dollars, and the team’s 30% allocation is widely known.
At the same time, platforms and large accounts are stepping away. If the token sees an impulsive jump at launch, the attention built during the warm-up period, the airdrop expectations, and the speculative copycat money may all look for an exit once the official token goes live.
The attention is real. Genuine support from the community appears to be scarce.