Meme coin LAPTOP, linked to Hunter Biden, has faced criticism from the crypto community ahead of its launch, with concerns over risks including celebrity coin hype, bot front-running, and fake tokens.

Hunter Biden, son of former US President Joe Biden, confirmed he will launch the meme coin LAPTOP on the Base blockchain on September 9. He shared the token code and a 31-second Fox News clip on X, which has garnered over 1.7 million views. However, the crypto community’s reaction has been largely mocking and skeptical. Some users point to a contradiction: Hunter Biden previously criticized Trump-linked crypto projects, yet he is now launching his own meme coin. Traders have suffered losses from numerous political and celebrity meme coins before—for example, the TRUMP and MELANIA coins have both seen their market caps drop by over 90% since launch. While LAPTOP plans to allocate 20% of its total supply to airdrops to compensate some TRUMP coin holders, this has not eased market concerns. The timing of the launch has also become a point of contention. Some traders argue that releasing LAPTOP’s code two days in advance gives automated trading bots and front-running traders time to prepare, putting regular users at a disadvantage. Within minutes of Hunter Biden’s post, multiple fake tokens with the same name emerged across networks. Other traders view the launch as Base’s move to compete for meme coin trading volume, questioning that it is chasing market hype rather than listing based on project quality. Kraken briefly posted a promotion for LAPTOP’s launch before deleting it, a move welcomed by some community users; Pump.fun, meanwhile, continues to promote the token, advertising a 0.1% trading fee. Political and celebrity-themed tokens often attract initial buying, but their ability to sustain funding afterward is highly uncertain.