Back to collectionYear-end review: product expansion and the rights of capital
The year brought a new route from game activity to rewards, but not a simple equation between participation and token income. The Raijin early-access announcement dated March 18 described Steam achievements feeding contest points, points becoming credits, and credits being exchanged for real-world rewards. Those separate units matter when assessing the product: the announcement did not make every achievement a direct XAI payment.
The year brought a new route from game activity to rewards, but not a simple equation between participation and token income. The Raijin early-access announcement dated March 18 described Steam achievements feeding contest points, points becoming credits, and credits being exchanged for real-world rewards. Those separate units matter when assessing the product: the announcement did not make every achievement a direct XAI payment.
Capital policy moved on a different track. On May 19, Diablo announced a plan to mint 150 million XAI over the coming months, citing an approved DAO proposal and approximate halving windows. On June 20, a subsequent announcement said an emissions halving had occurred and reduced the rate of new issuance by 50%. A lower issuance rate did not mean that half the outstanding token stock had disappeared; nor were the earlier projected windows fixed execution dates.
The November 25 update from Xai Foundation asserted a strong multi-year runway and described expansion beyond gaming, including prospective exposure to quantum markets. It offered a strategic direction, but no audited treasury balance or itemised spending schedule. The investment question at year-end was how that claimed runway would translate into delivered products and durable economics, not whether an expansion announcement alone established a token valuation.
December put the rights attached to capital under scrutiny. The holder dispute on December 24 exposed confusion between a non-transferable Sentry key and redeemable esXAI rewards. Keith's December 28 proposal then sought a different right: negotiated access to pre-TGE project allocations through esXAI swaps. Its own execution plan required community approval, a swap interface, investment terms and legal and security work. That text described a mechanism to be approved and built, rather than demonstrating delivered allocations. Connecting ecosystem expansion to enforceable holder benefits remained the central test.