Several months ago, I wrote this article: The Fascinating Ethereum MEV Bot Scam, where I dived deep into the technical aspects of a scam that has been circulating for years on platforms like X.com and YouTube. These scams revolve around deploying smart contracts on Ethereum, which are advertised as tools to generate astronomical profits for their users.
As I analyzed in that article, the scam works by subtly embedding functionality in the smart contract to drain all ETH from your wallet and transfer it to the scammer’s address , which is cleverly hidden in the code.
TL;DR MEV Bots are real, but they cannot run as smart contracts on Ethereum.
Genuine MEV bots operate on proprietary, non-free software and require significant investment, often in the thousands of euros. Additionally, their profit margins are not guaranteed to be high.
Oh, and from an ethical standpoint, MEV bots are just tools to steal money from others.
Setting the Record Straight
Since publishing the article in January 2024, I’ve received countless messages from people asking questions along these lines:
I found a video about an MEV bot that doesn’t look like a typical scam. This one blah blah blah, here’s the link (...). Could you tell me if it’s legit or a scam? The comments even look real.
The sheer volume of messages like this makes it clear that I wasn’t explicit enough in my original article: every video promising massive profits with an MEV botis, without exception, a scam .
Let’s take a closer look at one of these videos to understand how you can identify it as a scam.
The video introduces a so-called Chao Web3 Developer, who appears on camera explaining the code. Surely, someone willing to show their face must be trustworthy, right? Absolutely not. In this case, no one is actually showing their face. The person in the video does not exist. The video is AI-generated. You can spot this by observing details like lip movements , unnaturally glossy skin, and most importantly, always pay attention to the hands.
Rendering hands is notoriously difficult for AI, which often results in bizarre anomalies.
Look at the left hand's thumb: it’s unnaturally stiff and bent backward. Even I, with flexible fingers, struggle to replicate this pose.
A common response I hear is:
But the Comments look real
I’ve seen countless videos like this, and I can assure you the comments are always the same. These comments are bought, but not randomly. Instead, they are structured to look like FAQs . For example:
Q : I’ve never used MetaMask. How do I exchange EUR for ETH?
A : Use Moon Pay or similar services.
Or:
Q : Does my PC need to stay on?
A : No, the bot runs on the Ethereum network, not your PC.
What About Code Generated by ChatGPT?
Often, these videos showcase code, sometimes generated by ChatGPT. This might lead you to wonder, “Does ChatGPT generate scam code?” The answer is no. Here’s why:
- ChatGPT is not asked to generate what is promised in the video but something entirely different.
- The code you are told to use differs from what ChatGPT generates. The final, unequivocal conclusion is: ALL MEV bots running as smart contracts on Ethereum are scams .
You might still ask, "What if there are exceptions?" Let’s explore why this is impossible.
Why MEV Bots on Ethereum Cannot Exist
To begin, most people encountering these videos don’t know what an MEV bot actually is.
An MEV bot (Maximum Extractable Value ) is a program that monitors transactions in the mempool (the collection of unconfirmed blockchain transactions) of liquidity pools on DeFi exchanges like Uniswap to extract profit from traders. Here’s how:
- Arbitrage : Buying in one pool at a lower price and selling in another at a higher price.
- Front-running : Detecting a large incoming transaction (e.g., someone buying a lot of ETH) and placing your own transaction ahead of theirs.
- Sandwich attacks : Placing one transaction before and another after the victim’s to manipulate the price and profit. The bot needs to continuously monitor the mempool to function.
Here’s why this is impossible as an Ethereum smart contract:
- Smart contracts cannot access the mempool . In fact, Ethereum smart contracts cannot access any external resources (not even the internet). If they can’t read the mempool, they can’t function as MEV bots.
- Performance limitations : Real MEV bots require high performance, while Ethereum smart contracts are extremely slow.
- Gas fees : Running an Ethereum smart contract is prohibitively expensive . Even simple operations like adding two numbers incur significant costs. Running an MEV bot as a smart contract would cost thousands of dollars per minute .
How Do Real MEV Bots Work?
So, are MEV bots real? What are the alternatives? Let me clarify: I’m neither an MEV bot expert nor an advocate . MEV bots are, in essence, unethical—they exploit traders for profit.
While such practices are illegal in the real world, on the blockchain, they’re perfectly legal , thanks to a lack of regulation.
Requirements for an MEV Bot
- Powerful hardware : Serious MEV players use dedicated servers or even co-locate machines near Ethereum nodes. These setups cost thousands of euros.
- Significant funds : High gas fees and bribes to validators are necessary to ensure priority in block inclusion. This reduces profit margins.
- Zero-sum game : As competition increases, profits shrink. Losing means burning money on gas fees.
And don’t forget the software. Genuine MEV bot software is complex, proprietary, and never free . No one is going to sell—or gift—you their MEV bot code, because more bots mean less profit .
In short, unless you have top-tier software skills and a lot of money to potentially waste, this isn’t for you.