Recently, I've seen a bunch of people discussing inscriptions, claiming overnight riches and returns of hundreds or thousands of times. But in reality, many people simply don't understand what inscriptions are. Instead of getting cut, it's better to first understand the basics.

To put it simply, inscriptions are data written into the smallest unit of Bitcoin (satoshi) using the Ordinals protocol. They can be text, images, or videos. There's a good analogy: if Bitcoin is digital gold, then inscriptions are like gold jewelry—fundamentally the same but in different forms. Although Bitcoin doesn't have as complex features as Ethereum, the concept of carving or inscribing things onto Bitcoin is indeed fresh.

In the Bitcoin ecosystem, the process of creating these inscriptions is called "inscribing," and the result is called an "inscription." The community often asks, "What are we inscribing today?" meaning which project to inscribe today. This phrase sounds more ceremonial than Ethereum's "mint."

Regarding profit-making effects, yes, some people have made money. Last year, the ORDI project was very popular for a while, reportedly increasing by 1,000 times, and now its price is around $2.22. There are also projects like SATS, RATS, CATS—these are BRC-20 tokens, experimental meme coins on the Bitcoin chain. These projects claim there are no project teams, no pre-sales, and everyone can participate, sounding very fair. But what’s the reality?

I’ve looked at market data. The 24-hour trading volume of SATS is about $407,000, with over 54,000 addresses holding it; RATS has around $2.28 million in volume with 17,800 addresses; CATS has about $229,000 in volume with fewer addresses. From these figures, the hype is gradually dispersing.

But there's a key issue worth pondering—currently, 85% of inscriptions on the Bitcoin chain are BRC-20, essentially meme coins with no special capabilities. These projects have nothing beyond their quantity; they are purely speculative attempts by traders trying to become the next ORDI. But breaking out is very difficult, and most eventually go to zero.

What is the truly profitable part of inscriptions? Primary market minting. But the problem is, among hundreds of inscriptions, how do you choose? Besides projects like ORDI that have already gained popularity, others rely on information gaps and recommendations. This creates an unfair market—those with better information make money, while latecomers end up holding the bag.

There are also technical pitfalls. Bitcoin blocks are mined every 10 minutes, Ethereum every 12 seconds, leading to severe transaction congestion and high fees for inscriptions. The infrastructure is still very immature, and newcomers find it hard to navigate. This is why ERC-20 inscription projects emerged later, directly addressing high gas fees and block times. Currently, various inscription projects are flooding the market, but honestly, only BRC-20 and ERC-20 have some practical significance; others are just riding the trend.

From what I’ve seen, projects like BTCS, BEAR, etc., have 24-hour trading volumes between $100,000 and $140,000—far less than during their peak. Projects with high cumulative trading volume are also seeing declining activity. The question is, who knows which will truly break out and which will just become meme tokens to zero? Just like the animal coins in 2021, one after another vanished.

Ultimately, the inscription market is a place where opportunity and risk coexist. Some have made money by early participation, but most have been caught in traps. If you want to get involved, you must analyze rationally, research carefully, and not be blinded by the hype of making money. Invest cautiously, and bear the risks yourself—this is not just empty talk, but a hard lesson learned.