294-Day Lifespan: A Political Meme Experiment Named After Dogecoin Comes to an End

A government department named after Dogecoin, armed with a Silicon Valley-style chainsaw and big promises, emerged out of nowhere—only to bow out early.

The Office of Government Efficiency (DOGE), founded on the first day of the Trump administration, quietly disbanded after eight months. U.S. Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Cooper recently confirmed publicly: “It no longer exists.”

From its inception to its dissolution, DOGE lasted only 294 days. This lifespan is reminiscent of the flash-in-the-pan meme coins in the crypto market. The name directly borrowed Dogecoin’s ticker, the official website featured the Shiba Inu mascot, and Musk wielded a chainsaw while vowing to cut bureaucracy—more a symbol-driven political experiment than a conventional government agency.

A Meme-Style Debut

On January 20, 2025, inauguration day, Trump signed an executive order to establish DOGE. The name was instantly familiar to the crypto community. As a staunch Dogecoin supporter, Musk injected the meme DNA of crypto culture directly into the political arena.

DOGE’s website was filled with crypto elements. The iconic Shiba Inu logo deconstructed the traditional, serious demeanor of government agencies.

Musk’s promotion on the X platform further amplified the meme nature. He posed with a chainsaw, captioned “Chainsaw for Bureaucracy”—the kind of provocative slogan he used when supporting Dogecoin.

DOGE’s naming and communication strategy reflected a new type of political messaging: leveraging internet meme culture and playful irreverence to break traditional frameworks and appeal to younger generations and digital natives.

Silicon Valley-Style Operations

DOGE’s operating style was unlike any traditional government department—more like a Silicon Valley startup. Musk recruited about 50 young people in their twenties, wearing hoodies and jeans, mockingly nicknamed “kid soldiers” by outsiders.

The youthful team brought an aggressive approach. Running on Red Bull, they hustled between agencies, installing personnel in all major federal departments within three weeks, taking control of cash flows, and screening contract projects.

AI technology was DOGE’s core tool. The team used AI for basic optimization, digitizing everything from contract disbursements to employee travel reimbursements. AI quickly identified resource waste and optimization opportunities—for example, spotting idle office buildings and terminating leases immediately, saving $150 million.

This “move fast and break things” Silicon Valley spirit clashed fiercely with Washington’s political ecosystem. The DOGE team demanded federal employees submit weekly reports—failure to do so was treated as resignation, and employees not showing up were threatened with administrative leave.

The Gap Between Narrative and Reality

DOGE initially set grand goals. Musk claimed he would cut $2 trillion from the federal budget, while Ramaswamy proposed optimizing 70% of federal employees. These figures echoed the hyperbolic marketing typical in crypto, designed to attract attention and spark discussion.

But reality quickly revealed its limits. Although DOGE claimed to have cut about $160 billion in spending, this was less than one-fifth of Musk’s stated target. A significant gap emerged between the grand narrative and actual execution.

A report by Democratic members of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations stated that DOGE “wasted” more than $21 billion in public funds within six months.

The report pointed out that some halted projects caused huge losses: freezing the Department of Energy’s loan program cost the government about $263 million in interest income; USAID shutdowns led to about $110 million worth of food and medicine rotting in warehouses.

DOGE’s operating style triggered widespread backlash. Democratic attorneys general from 14 states sued Musk and Trump, alleging that the powers Trump granted Musk violated constitutional appointment clauses. DOGE faced nearly 20 lawsuits, including violations of privacy law and unauthorized access to sensitive government data.

The White House Meme Bows Out

From its high-profile debut to its quiet exit, DOGE’s dissolution stood in stark contrast to its launch.

In May this year, Musk announced his resignation from DOGE after a public split with Trump over the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” Over the summer, DOGE staff gradually left headquarters, and security posts and authorization signs disappeared.

This month, U.S. Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Cooper publicly confirmed for the first time that DOGE no longer exists, with its functions taken over by the OPM. The government-wide hiring freeze, once a signature move of DOGE, has also ended.

DOGE team members have taken on new roles within the government. Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia is now head of the National Design Studio; Zachary Terrell serves as CTO of the Department of Health and Human Services. This symbolizes the end of DOGE as an experimental initiative, though some of its ideas are being integrated into traditional government structures.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis commented on X: “DOGE fought the Swamp, but the Swamp won.” This political meme coin experiment ultimately ended with the victory of traditional political structures.

The symbolic economy is permeating traditional politics. Although the DOGE experiment ended prematurely, it signaled the irreversible deep integration of politics and crypto culture. In the future, more “crypto-native” political institutions and governance models may emerge. The key is how to blend the crypto world’s spirit of innovation with the stability of traditional governance, creating new models that are both symbolically appealing and substantively effective.

Narrative is indeed a powerful tool for building consensus, but without technological implementation and value creation, it’s just a castle in the air. When the meme hype fades, what truly remains in the industry are always the technologies and projects that solve real problems.