What are sniper bots in token mints and launches?
Short answer: Sniper bots monitor the mempool and launch contracts so their buy transactions land in the same block the sale opens, often within the first few slots. By the time a human's wallet confirms, the bots hold a large share of supply and sell into the demand they just created. On launches with poor bot controls, automated wallets routinely capture the majority of early supply.
Mempool watching
Pending transactions are visible before they confirm. Snipers detect the exact transaction that enables trading and submit their buys with higher priority fees so they execute first. This is infrastructure-level speed, not a fast clicker.
Bundled buys
Modern snipers bundle dozens of buys from fresh wallets into one atomic package, spreading holdings across addresses to stay under per-wallet limits. On-chain analysis after the fact shows the cluster; by then the supply is gone.
What launch teams can do
Per-wallet caps enforced in the contract, commit-reveal or batch auction mechanics, and pre-launch allowlists with sybil screening move the advantage away from raw speed. Each trades away some openness, which is why the choice belongs in launch design, not incident response.