What you need to know

• Adobe Firefly integrates Gemini’s Flash 2.5 Image for enhanced AI content creation capabilities
• Users gain the flexibility to switch between Adobe apps seamlessly during their creative process.
• Premium members get unlimited access to Gemini’s features until September 1st, while free tier folks get up to 20 free media generations.

Adobe Firefly is pushing to make content creation seamless by bringing in Gemini’s latest model to the playing field. In a press release, the platform announced that with this addition, “people have even greater flexibility to explore their ideas with industry-leading generative AI models and create stunning content with ease.”

In June, Adobe’s Firefly landed on Android, bringing Gemini’s latest Imagen 4 and Veo 3, and now it is adding Gemini’s Flash 2.5 Image to help with AI content generation.

According to Hannah Elsakr, Adobe’s Vice President of New GenAI Business Ventures, this integration, combined with Adobe’s existing Creative Cloud apps, provides a comprehensive creative process from start to finish.

“Only Adobe delivers a complete creative workflow that takes ideas from inspiration to impact – empowering everyone with the freedom to experiment, the confidence to perfect every detail, and the control to make their work stand out. We invite everyone to try it out today,” Elsakr added.

Adobe states that despite having AI partner models like Google, OpenAI, and Black Forest Labs integrated into its platforms, it continues to work on expanding its FireFly AI models. This gives users a variety of AI generation tools to pick from within a single workflow.

“We’re delivering the flexibility to use the right model for the job, without bouncing between workflows or platforms,” the press release stated. What’s more, users can even switch between different Adobe apps Photoshop, Illustrator, or Premiere, to refine or edit their content while working on FireFly.

For instance, social media content creators can use the Gemini 2.5 Flash Image in Firefly to create multiple graphics for keeping the design consistent across posts and then move these designs into Adobe Express to easily animate, resize, or generate captions. Additionally, Visual Designers can create prototype product concepts or character designs in Firefly, explore multiple directions, and then move them into Photoshop or Illustrator for fine-tuned edits, Adobe adds.

Lastly, Adobe says that all the content created on its platform and across other AI models will not be used to train generative AI models, including the new Gemini 2.5 Flash integration, keeping things secure for the user.

Starting today, Gemini 2.5 Flash Image will be available in Firefly’s Text to Image module and Firefly Boards (beta), and Adobe Express. And Adobe is giving its Premium tier members access to unlimited generations with Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, until Sept.1, while those on Firefly and Express free plans have access to only 20 generations at no cost.

Coinbase’s Layer 2 network, Base, has emerged as the leading blockchain for daily token creation, surpassing Solana for the first time since 2023.

This shift is primarily driven by Zora, a protocol that enables users to turn digital content into tradable tokens.

Base flips Solana

According to data compiled by Sealaunch on Dune Analytics, Base saw over 100,000 new tokens minted on July 27 and 28 alone, most of them originating from Zora.

In comparison, Solana-based platforms like Pump.fun and LetsBonk produced significantly fewer tokens during the same period.

Base creator Jesse Pollak highlighted the milestone, noting that the network now leads all others in on-chain token issuance.

Coinbase executive Conor Grogan also emphasized the shift’s significance, calling it a major development in the on-chain ecosystem.

Zora coins

Zora’s recent rise marks a notable trend in the evolution of content monetization on the blockchain.

While the platform initially gained attention before its April airdrop, its recent spike in activity reflects renewed interest in “content coins,” tokens created from individual posts or ideas.

However, blockchain analysis platform TK Research pointed out that participation on Zora is heavily skewed toward speculation.

According to the firm, roughly 93% of users are classified as traders, while only 6.1% act solely as creators. Less than 1% engage in both roles.

Considering this, critics argue that Zora’s system encourages speculation over substance.

AI researcher Sterling Crispin pointed out that these kinds of tokens are shitcoins because they are “low liquidity coins on automated market makers with exponential price curves.”

According to him:

“You can call them Creator Coins, Culture Tokens, Internet Capital Markets, Music Tokens, AI Tokens, or Memecoins, but it won’t change the toxic fundamentals. It’s a zero sum PvP game of musical chairs. Nobody leaves with more than they came with unless someone else is losing. And retail gets rinsed by snipers, bundlers, coordinated pump and dumps, FNF groups, and industrial scale autonomous trading bots.”

Pollak, however, defended the model. He argued that content and creators have long been undervalued and that tokens can correct that imbalance.

He added:

“Coins are the most powerful technology we have as an industry for enabling the free flow of value. we should let creators use them.”

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Moonshot added Apple Pay support for launching new memecoins on June 27, expanding its iOS application beyond buying and trading tokens to include a creation workflow that requires only a photo upload and a tap on the “Create” tab. 

Branded Moonshot Create, the product allows any user to mint a Solana-based coin by submitting an image and paying the network initialization fee through Apple Pay. 

Each newly minted coin carries a 0.5% trading fee until it “bonds,” a protocol event that locks its supply to an on-chain liquidity curve. Once bonded, the fee drops to 0.3%, and the creator earns up to half of every swap fee generated by the pool, according to the company’s announcement. 

Tokens that reach a $1 million fully diluted valuation and complete bonding become eligible for preferred verification status and front-page placement inside the Moonshot app, which reports millions of monthly active users.

The company framed preferred placement as a growth loop: verified coins appear above the fold in the discovery tab, drawing additional liquidity and raising fee income for both creators and the platform. 

Moonshot did not disclose the percentage split between the platform and verified creators beyond the 50% cap.

Pump.fun release updates amid market uncertainty

On the same day, memecoin launchpad Pump.fun announced an update of its mobile application.

Among the new features are a feed to catch tokens rising rapidly in price, the option to quickly buy portions of any supported token with a single button, and a news section featuring trending tokens.

The launch by Moonshot and Pump.fun comes amid declining interest in memecoins in recent weeks.

In April, monthly trading volume related to memecoins on Solana grew nearly $12 billion, according to Blockworks data. It continued the rise and climbed from $56.4 billion to $74.7 billion in May but stands at only $47 billion this month.

The memecoin sector was the sixth-worst-performing out of 24 crypto sectors over the past 30 days. Memecoins registered an average drawdown of 30.3% during the period, which was heavily eclipsed by other popular narratives, such as decentralized application tokens and real-world assets.

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The Worldwide Asset eXchange (WAX) has removed the fee required to create a blockchain account through its Cloud Wallet.

Previously, new users had to pay 5 $WAXP to set up an account, a measure originally introduced to prevent automated bot activity. The removal of this fee is intended to make it easier for new users to join the WAX blockchain and encourage broader adoption by reducing the financial barrier to entry.

WAX stated that its blockchain “is stronger than ever” and is therefore making account creation easy and free.

What is WAX?

WAX is a blockchain network designed for high-volume transactions, with a particular focus on gaming, digital assets, and NFTs.

Unlike some other blockchains, WAX does not charge transaction fees, allowing users to interact with dApps and trade assets without incurring costs for each transaction.

The blockchain is built to support large-scale activity, processing up to 10,000 transactions per second. It has been adopted by various NFT projects, game developers, and digital marketplaces due to its efficiency and ease of use. WAX also offers a Cloud Wallet, which allows users to manage their assets without needing extensive technical knowledge of blockchain technology.

What’s next for WAX?

The removal of the wallet creation fee is one of several changes WAX has planned for 2025. Initially, the fee was introduced to prevent excessive bot activity and automated account creation, but WAX has stated that its security measures have since evolved, allowing the paywall to be lifted.

In addition to this change, WAX has is rolling out several upgrades this year to enhance its blockchain infrastructure, developer tools, and marketplace. The Cloud Wallet will receive mobile apps for iOS and Android, expanded support for side chains, Testnet environments, and EVM compatibility.

On the blockchain level, WAX is improving security and decentralisation, including quantum-proofing, decentralising its Random Number Generator (RNG) system, and making its Multichain Bridge open-source. Performance optimizations, such as RAM efficiency improvements, will help scale the network whilst maintaining smooth operations.

For developers, WAX is simplifying node deployment and expanding documentation to support dApp integration. Meanwhile, the vIRL Marketplace will undergo improvements to enhance the trading experience.