Base Has 3 Airdrops Nobody's Talking About

Everyone's still aping into Hyperliquid while Base is quietly building. Yeah, I know — "Base is just Coinbase's chain" — but that's exactly why it works. Real users, real volume, and protocols that might actually survive the next cycle.

I've been splitting my time between the obvious plays and some newer stuff that's getting zero attention. Here's what's working.

YO Protocol — DeFi that doesn't feel like DeFi

This one caught me off guard. It's a lending/borrowing platform, but the UX doesn't make you want to throw your laptop. Clean interface, decent TVL (around $8M last I checked), and they're clearly gearing up for a token.

What I'm doing: supplying USDC, borrowing against it to farm other stuff. Not glamorous, but it's volume. Their docs hint at a points system coming "soon" which in crypto time means probably next month.

Paradex — perps for people who hate perps

I say that as someone who usually avoids perp DEXs because the fees eat you alive. Paradex is different — built by StarkWare guys, runs on their own L2 but deposits from Base are smooth. Zero gas on trades once you're on their L2.

Been running small positions ($50-100) just to show activity. Not trying to make money trading, just farming the potential drop. Volume = airdrop points in this game.

Theo + Minara AI — the weird stuff

Theo is doing something with options (I don't fully understand it and that's fine). Minara AI is... AI meets DeFi? Look, not every protocol needs to make sense. What matters: they're both Base-native, both pre-token, both have active communities.

I throw $20-30 at these "weird" plays because the hit rate on small bets is insane. If Theo pops like Lyra did, that's rent money from a $30 farm.

The Base meta

Base is the comfy chain. Fast, cheap, backed by Coinbase so it's not going anywhere. But most farmers are ignoring it because "nothing's hot there" right now. That's the opportunity.

My current split:
- 40% YO Protocol (lending/borrowing volume)
- 30% Paradex (perp trades)
- 20% Minara + Theo (lottery tickets)
- 10% just holding on-chain for whatever launches next

The full list of what's active is here— updated way more often than I check.

Why Base over other L2s?

Arbitrum feels crowded. Optimism is... fine, but Base has the Coinbase distribution advantage. When normies come back (and they will), they'll onboard through Coinbase, which means they'll hit Base first.

Plus, the "Coinbase Ventures backed this" signal is real. Not every Base project will win, but the chain itself isn't going to rug you.

Real talk: I'm not betting the farm on Base, but ignoring it completely seems dumb. The airdrops here won't be Hyperliquid-sized, but they'll be consistent, and in a few months we'll see who was early.