A bunch of investors buying a bunch of stock--on margin--in a company that doesn't have an enormous amount of stock floating would inflate the price quite nicely, and I don't doubt that's what happened.  I seriously doubt the government would have any interest in pumping Gamestop stock, nor do I think Gates and Buffett feel threatened by cryptocurrency.

This stuff is really interesting, though.  It'd be nice if those Reddit peeps would pump something I owned.  Too bad I'm not holding any doge right now.

Hate to say it, but doge is more useful in a lot of ways than bitcoin is.  That's why it's a darling crypto for gamblers--low fees, quick confirmation time.  It might have begun its life as a silly little meme coin, but it's hung in there over the years and it's still popular.