Meta Digest

Wildxyz platform set to introduce the future of NFT artists

Stephen Reynolds Stephen Reynolds on March 27, 2023

Wildxyz – Several of the most cutting-edge technologies may be found in the Web3 sector, which is also home to various NFT platforms.

While initiatives with comparable purposes, art, and utilities come and go, Wildxyz is a one-of-a-kind effort that aims to enhance the NFT environment.

J. Douglass Kobs, the company’s founder and CEO, is seeking to pioneer a novel approach to NFT that focuses on “experiential” art.

Wildxyz is also trying to develop a community of other creators around a residency program that allows artists to immerse themselves in Web3.

Backers

Wildxyz is using a unique approach and has a significant portfolio of major supporters, including:

  • Actress Gwyneth Paltrow
  • LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman
  • Twitch co-founder Kevin Lin
  • Philadelphia 76ers President Daryl Morey

Wildxyz just announced a $7 million seed round headed by Matrix Partners, with investors including others.

Also, the company receives input from well-known NFT artist Emily “pplpleasr” Yang.

Creators

Wildxyz debuted last autumn, along with its residency program and inaugural “Season 0” cohort, which comprises artists such as Mitchell Chan, Aluna, and Harm van den Dorpel.

Using the platform, each creative will release NFT-based creations.

But, a Season 1 cohort will arrive soon.

Sarah Friend and Serwah Attufuah will be among the cohort’s names.

Sarah Friend is well-known for her innovative blockchain ventures.

Meanwhile, Attafuah has created NFT drops in collaboration with GQ and Paris Hilton.

  1. Douglass Kob believes Attafuah will become a household name.

Meanwhile, other artists taking part include:

  • Jonas Lund
  • Nic Hamilton
  • Anna Lucia
  • Beryl
  • Lisa Odette
  • Gabriel Massan
  • Idil Dursun
  • Matto
  • Tim Maxwell

Moreover, the Season 1 group is completed by:

  • StupidGiant
  • Santiago
  • Jerk Beasley
  • Nygilia
  • Sam Hains
  • Jenny Jiang
  • Yuma Yanagisawa
  • Mia Pixley

The cohort includes a diverse set of artists from all around the world, with some more prominent than others and some having deeper Web3 experiences.

The intention appears to have been to assemble a varied range of artists.

Throughout the 12-week virtual residency program, Wildxyz creates unique combinations to assist participants in learning.

Read also: Stablecoins witness change after Circle confirms SVB exposure

A unique community

According to Kobs, the residence will include a schedule of programming such as artist-led courses for the groups, allowing them to share their talents and experiences.

The Wildxyz cohort will also include prominent mentors.

In the first group, for example, pseudonymous generative audiovisual artist Deafbeef kept track of artist Caleb Ogg’s development while he prepared the debut of his Machines NFT drop.

The residency, according to Kobs, is comparable to a Y Combinator for artists.

It serves as a training ground for creators to hone their Web3 abilities before generating and releasing new work on the platform.

He stated that the idea is to surround artists with specialists and influencers from whom they may learn.

It was created with the intention of fostering friendships and community while making unique blockchain art.

“I’m always excited to connect with and learn from any artist in any respect, but have always lacked some sort of structure, I guess,” said Attafuah.

“Wild[xyz] gives me a place to riff off of a really solid community of diversely talented creatives, and I really look forward to the Wild sessions as I take away so much more to reflect on.”

The Wildverse

The residency program is only the first step toward Wildxyz’s long-term ambition of becoming a destination for “experiential” art.

The firm is putting everything into creating an immersive, spatial platform that can be accessed via VR or AR.

While many prefer to call it a metaverse, Kobs and his team name it the Wildverse because he feels the term “metaverse” has been “bastardized.”

Each Wildxyz NFT launch will have an immersive 3D world that visitors may stroll around.

The Wild Oasis NFTs, for example, provide platform advantages and allow holders to explore a jungle area.

The Machines NFTs house 2D art works and a virtual gallery where visitors may see them.

“People want to be in spaces that they can explore, and where they can create an emotional connection to somebody that created work,” said Kob.

“That place doesn’t really exist digitally, in my experience. I haven’t found it.”

The idea of launching projects like NFT-based interactive games may not appear to be the greatest way to provide an immersive online art experience.

Instead, Kobs sees the cohorts’ current and future work as the first step toward a healthy artist community that can support future Web3 projects.

“I think those building blocks are really incredible things built by incredible people, that we get to go explore and then talk about and learn about – and also meet people along the way,” said Kobs.

“I view it as this catalyst for us to build a space that I want to play in and learn in, and that I want to meet people and make these relationships in.”

Image source: Twitter

Cool Cats unveils 2023 plans, and it gets better

Stephen Reynolds Stephen Reynolds on March 27, 2023

Cool Cats: The NFT industry had a tremendous rise in late 2021, and a number of projects witnessed a surge in popularity.

Many of the NFTs were subsequently utilized as social media profile pictures.

Cool Cats ranked high among the most well-liked NFTs, reaching record levels.

The prices did, however, drop drastically last year, and collectors’ complaints began to increase.

The owners of Cool Cats recently revealed a new strategy for moving the project along with fresh branding.

They also implied fully customizable avatars as a possible future extension outside of Ethereum.

“With our new strategic direction and rebrand, we want to convey to the community and the broader Web3 space that Cool Cats is here to stay,” said CEO Stephen Teglas.

“We’re not just building for the next year, or the next five years – we’re planning for the long term.”

What’s coming?

In the near future, holders of Cool Cats and Cool Pets NFTs will receive a complimentary Fracture NFT through airdrop.

The free NFT, according to project co-founder and head of content Robert Mehew, are dynamic tokens that enable a brand-new storytelling experience through digital artifacts.

The Fracture NFTs will develop when holders complete objectives (or Journeys) in the “World of Cooltopia” story.

They eventually make possible rewards public.

But later in 2023, the Explorers NFTs will represent a larger extension of the Cool Cats initiative.

Users may post fully editable avatars of their entire bodies on various blockchain networks.

The NFTs may also be utilized with a variety of platforms and apps that are supported.

Functionality

The project is similar to the Ethereum NFT project Doodles, which released Doodles 2 before revealing the entire scope of the Explorers capability.

Old profile pictures are transformed into completely customizable avatars that can update the NFT’s virtual attire as part of the project’s bridge to a new blockchain (Flow).

A spokesperson for Cool Cats added that the Explorers NFTs would function on a variety of layer-1 blockchains and layer-2 scaling networks.

Some of the blockchains are incompatible with the EVM, or Ethereum Virtual Machine.

Read also: DeGods NFT make progress towards Ethereum switch

The platforms will be made available all year round.

The Ethereum sidechain network Polygon was previously utilized by Cool Cats to drop limited-edition NFTs and introduce a mobile game.

“Our goal is to remove as much fraction as possible,” a representative said, addressing the movement of avatars across various blockchains.

The Cool Cats also intend to collaborate with community members and create resources that may be applied to the Explorers project.

Rebranding

The most recent statement was aligned to the Cool Cats project’s redesign in marketing materials and social media.

The rebranding is connected to new narrative material that centers on Blue Cat, the project’s main character.

“Our new logo features a forward-facing cat, a nod to our focus on building for the future,” said Colin “Clon” Egan, the co-founder and Creative Director of Cool Cats.

Progress

The floor price for Cool Cats rose to about 14 ETH (around $48,000) in October 2021 as a result of the NFT market’s overall spike in late 2021.

A prominent Hollywood agency, Creative Artists Agency, signed the project last year in an effort to seek licensing and media arrangements.

However, a lot of factors, like the following, caused the Cool Cats price to drop:

  • Leadership departures
  • Mixed reception to Cooltopia
  • Complaints of the founders not doing enough to support the project

According to NFT Price Floor statistics, the NFTs floor price was just 2 ETH prior to the announcement.

Due to the low price of Ethereum, the price was worth less than $3,200.

Cool Cats produced more than $377 million in secondary market trade volume, according to CryptoSlam.

Over $105 million was contributed by the Cool Pets offshoot.

The project worked with Time Magazine to create limited-edition NFTs in 2021.

They just disclosed a marketing agreement with hardware wallet manufacturer Ledger.

“We ultimately believe that scaling Cool Cats’ brand awareness and onboarding more members into the brand is one of the most effective ways for us to deliver on the expectations of our community,” said Stephen Teglas.

Image source: NFT Now

Heterosis debuts with a unique experience in NFTs

Josh Barter Josh Barter on March 27, 2023

Heterosis – Mat Collishaw is a well-known figure in the art world, having established his mark on the English art scene.

His art was a popular mainstay in the 1980s, and he continues to demonstrate his photographic eye to this day.

Collinshaw, like many other artists, is faced with a choice: adapt to the new world of technology or fall behind.

Thankfully, the photographer picked the former, allowing him to create a series of works in the form of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

When he began on a new stage in his creative career, his decision allowed him to share his works in the form of a digital garden, Heterosis.

The project

Mat Collishaw’s creative focus has switched to a new tulip movement.

His Heterosis project is a groundbreaking NFT-centric flower collection that provides an immersive metaverse experience.

Heterosis is a collaboration between artist Danil Krivoruchko, snark.art, and EL-GABAl, a metaverse architecture collective.

Snark.art created the og.art protocol, which is used by various NFT projects, including Heterosis.

The project consists largely of two important components: a collection of unique NFT flora that may be bred and a virtual greenhouse.

The greenhouse is a post-apocalyptic computer reconstruction of the London National Gallery.

Significance of the project

Mat Collishaw intended to emphasize the importance of the Heterosis project by referring to it as a break from established art traditions.

He defined it as an attempt in a novel media that many believe will be the future of art.

“What we’re trying to do is create dynamic things that evolve, mutate, and also be able to visit them in these virtual social system environments,” said Collishaw.

“Things like this wouldn’t be possible in any other medium.”

Read also: Candy Digital and Getty Images to launch unique collection

The NFTs

Heterosis is one of the market’s most distinctive NFT collections.

Collectors who mint receive a one-of-a-kind Heterosis blossom with its own set of features and Genes.

The two elements will be determined by the contents of the owner’s wallet.

As it blooms, the owners become creators and can engage in a hybridization game.

Cross-breeding two Heterosis NFTs can result in the activation of novel mutations, hues, and patterns.

They will then be able to build a new exotic digital flower species.

As the hybrid is created, owners can choose whether to preserve the bloom or have it replaced, ensuring that the number of NFTs in the collection remains constant.

Collectors must pay a fee to the proprietors of the second parent in order to hybridize.

Collectors often set the price, which encourages the development of increasingly uncommon and gorgeous blooms.

The production of Heterosis NFTs began on Tuesday.

With the project’s “Diamond Hands presale,” the minting sold out in just a few hours.

The offer will run until late Thursday night.

The digital greenhouse

The metaverse greenhouse has the unique NFT collection.

It is accessible via a variety of devices and provides high-definition, real-time visualization of thousands of diverse plant species, including flowers, trees, and other vegetation.

Users may zoom in on certain blooms in the digital greenhouse to appreciate their individuality.

“You can go in there, meet other collectors, talk, and you can see all the flowers in the collection in their current iteration in this social-metaverse environment,” said Collishaw.

He stated that the project’s immersive setting, along with its participatory nature, marks a significant advancement in digital arts and NFTs.

“We’ve created The National Gallery in London,” Collishaw continued.

“Rebuilt virtually as if it was neglected, abandoned, decayed, all overtaken by organic matter, as if this old analog world of painting has been neglected, destroyed, abandoned, and this new burgeoning media of digital art in the shape of flowers is now taking over.”

Image source: BeamStart

Bored Ape Yacht Club Prices Mirrors Declining Ethereum Value

Josh Barter Josh Barter on March 27, 2023

The Bored Ape Yacht Club has been one of the most prominent projects in the NFT space. Attracting celebrities and generating seven-figure sales. This is largely due to their high profile as an NFT project. That was widely accepted by buyers during last year’s NFT boom.However, they have recently felt some effects from the crypto market volatility which caused prices drop significantly across all assets.

The Bored Ape NFT is currently listed on a secondary marketplace and its price sits at 80 ETH, equal to just $96K! Overnight, the price fell to $91,741.

The price of entry-level Bored Ape NFTs has fallen dramatically in less than two months, dropping to nearly 78%.

Read also: Seth Green Pursues Buyer of His Stolen NFT to Put Animated Project Back on Track

On April 29, the day before project creator Yuga Labs launched. Their NFT virtual land sale for Otherside. The floor price hit a record-high price of over 152 ETH or $429,000 USD.

The Bored Ape Yacht Club has seen a 47% decrease in ETH since then.

As the price of Ethereum has declined, many NFT collections have also experienced a drop in their valuations.

The Bored Ape Yacht Club has seen a sub-$100,000 floor price for NFTs only once in August 2021.

The value of NFTs continues to drop, with many collections losing large amounts in just one month. For example, Bored Ape Yacht Club is now worth 54% less than it was earlier this year and CryptoPunks has declined 48%.

Though the NFT market saw incredible demand in 2021, generating a trading volume worth $25 billion and nearly $16 million in the first four months this year. On May 1, OpnSea hit a record $476 million in a single day.

The crypto market experienced a significant decline in early May, but it did not leave a similar impact on daily trading volume. 

The crypto market saw Bitcoin and Ethereum reach lows last seen in 2020. As a result, NFT trading climbed with buyers seeking bargains amid the economic depression.

The Bored Ape Yacht Club is not immune to the occasional market challenges that plague many businesses. The declining price points and slow trading volume are but two examples of this fact.

The researchers at Cryptoslam found that the original collection yielded $96 million in trading volume over 30 days, down by almost 72% since the previous 30-day window.

Read also: Seth Green Welcomes Fred Simian Back Into His NFT Wallet

Monetizing Your Art: 6 Ways to Make Money with NFTs

Lily Sanders Lily Sanders on March 20, 2023

The art world has always been where creators have struggled to make a living. However, with the advent of NFTs, artists now have a new way to monetize their work. NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are digital assets stored on a blockchain. They have become popular in recent years due to their ability to verify the ownership and authenticity of digital art.

As an artist, there are several ways to make money from NFTs. Here are some of the ways you can do so: 

1. Create and Sell Your Own NFTs

The most obvious way to make money from NFTs as an artist is to create and sell your own NFTs. To do this, you must create a digital artwork you want to sell as an NFT. Once you have created your artwork, you must mint it as an NFT on a blockchain. You can do this in several marketplaces, such as OpenSea or Rarible.

When you mint your artwork as an NFT, you can set the price for it. You can also set the royalty fee you will receive every time the NFT is sold. This means you can continue to make money from your artwork even after selling it.

2. Offer Limited Edition NFTs

Another way to make money from NFTs as an artist is to offer limited edition NFTs. This creates a sense of scarcity and exclusivity around your artwork, which can drive the price. You can create a limited edition series of NFTs, each with a unique feature or design.

3. Collaborate with Other Artists

Collaborating with other artists can be a great way to create unique NFTs and reach a wider audience. You can create joint artworks or collections, and each artist can sell the NFTs on their own platforms. This can help you reach new audiences and create buzz around your work.

4. Create Digital Collectibles

Digital collectibles like trading cards or virtual pets have become increasingly popular in the NFT space. As an artist, you can create your own digital collectibles and sell them as NFTs. These can be anything from virtual art galleries to digital fashion items.

5. Auction Your NFTs

If you have created a highly sought-after NFT, you can auction it off to the highest bidder. This can create a bidding war and drive up the price of your artwork. You can auction your NFT on a platform such as Foundation or SuperRare.

6. Partner with Brands

Brands are increasingly interested in the world of NFTs and are looking for artists to partner with. You can create NFTs related to a brand’s product or service and sell them on their behalf. This can be a great way to reach a wider audience and create more exposure for your work.

Conclusion

NFTs have opened up new opportunities for artists to monetize their work. By creating and selling their own NFTs, offering limited edition NFTs, collaborating with other artists, creating digital collectibles, auctioning their NFTs, or partnering with brands, artists can create new revenue streams and reach new audiences. As with any new technology, the world of NFTs is constantly evolving, so artists must keep up to date with the latest developments and trends.

Learn more about the NFT markets with Meta Digest! We are your go-to source for the latest NFT news, drops, mints, projects, and more. We also cover blockchain projects, crypto lending platforms, the latest updates on the Bitcoin and Ethereum space, and everything else crypto. Check out our other posts here.

GQ3 NFTs fizzled upon mint, floor price is dropping

Vina Grady Vina Grady on March 20, 2023

GQ3 – NFTs have been all the rage in recent years, and even beyond their peak, they continue to affect sectors.

Celebrities aren’t the only ones attempting to break into Web3, as some large corporations have also made the transition.

Heritage businesses, in particular, are anxious to break into Web3, expecting to re-establish their status among the younger generation.

GQ is one of the most recent heritage companies to enter Web3.

It launched its GQ3 community, followed by an Ethereum NFT drop to round off the endeavor.

The NFT promised purchasers perks, but the GQ3 line did not sell out.

As a consequence, despite dropping resale prices, the company is searching for methods to keep NFT consumers satisfied.

The news

The GQ3 NFT mint opened on Wednesday, with 1,661 NFT access pieces available for more than 0.1957 ETH apiece.

Only 1,060 NFTs were sold when the mint window ended on Friday, according to statistics from the OpenSea marketplace.

GQ said on its official Discord channel and in a now-deleted tweet that it will randomly airdrop half of the remaining NFTs to existing holders.

Projects that fail to properly mint NFTs will occasionally use this approach.

When NFT launches fail to translate their enthusiasm into sales, it gives holders with additional potential value.

“We are going to reward all those who supported our artists and believed in GQ3 by sharing an Issue 001 token to a randomized 50% of unique holder wallets,” said the announcement.

It was also encouraged that NFT recipients share their gift with a friend.

Furthermore, the Condé Nast-owned journal stated that it will keep the remaining supply for community and promotional purposes.

Read also: Heterosis debuts with a unique experience in NFTs

The NFTs

Following the mint’s end, GQ disclosed that the NFTs artworks were created by a variety of artists, including:

  • Chuck Anderson
  • Kelsey
  • Niziolek
  • Serwah Attafuah
  • The pseudonymous REO

Meanwhile, secondary market pricing for GQ3 NFTs plunged precipitously.

In OpenSea, the floor price, or the price of the cheapest-listed NFT, is 0.105 ETH or $155 USD.

It also dipped momentarily below 0.1 ETH.

So far, 27 ETH or $39,350 worth of NFTs have been exchanged since the conclusion of the mint.

Each GQ3 NFT includes various benefits, including:

  • A one-year print magazine subscription
  • Digital access
  • A GQ hat
  • Other GQ merchandise
  • Access to GQ3 parties (a party will be held at the NFT NYC conference in April)

Holders can also engage in a unique Discord channel, getting priority access to future NFT drops.

“We are committed and dedicated to GQ3 and in this for the long term,” the GQ3 announcement reads.

“[And] we want everyone to see the inspiring work our artists created.”

Legacy brands

GQ is following in the footsteps of other print heritage companies as they enter the Web3 arena, including:

  • Time
  • Playboy
  • The New York Times

All brands used NFT drops and concentrated on community outreach.

GQ published an NFT-themed print edition in 2022, marking the commencement of the GQ3 effort, which included a Discord server and, eventually, the NFT deployment.

GQ is hardly the first historical brand to fall short of its NFT expectations and plummet this year.

Porsche attempted to sell 7,500 Ethereum NFTs in January.

One of the reasons the launch failed was the brand’s marketing strategy.

Porsche failed to pique the public’s interest due to its hazy usability and benefits.

It barely sold over 1,850 NFTs at debut before the corporation stated that the mint will be cut short.

As a result, only around one-third of the projected inventory was sold.

Nonetheless, the limited availability of Porsche NFTs aided in increasing demand.

Secondary prices have risen since then, with OpenSea opening at 1.98 ETH (about $2,800), more than double its original mint price.

Image source: GQ

Vaynerchuk and VeeFriends expand from NFTs to shelves as toys

Josh Barter Josh Barter on March 6, 2023

Image source: NFT Plazas

Gary Vaynerchuk made his mark by turning his VeeFriends doodles into NFTs and generating over $300 million in trading volume.

VeeFriends won a place in Christie’s auctions, brand partnerships, and a place at the VeeCon convention in May.

The NFT project will get another upgrade as the characters transform into toys for US toy store chains.

The toys

VeeFriends hit the shelves this month through Macy’s and the Toys R Us brand as plush and vinyl toys.

The toys are based on ten VeeFriends characters from the extensive NFT collection.

They were designed in collaboration with Toikido, a toy and entertainment startup.

Randomly distributed in “blind boxes”, characters like Patient Panda, Practical Peacock, and Willful Wizard will enter the real world as stuffed animals and vinyl figurines.

The first wave of toys will go on sale on October 17th.

Potential owners can also find them on the websites of Macy’s, Toys R Us, and VeeFriends.

Toys R Us

Once a popular independent chain, Toys R Us was forced to close in 2018 after bankruptcy proceedings.

Andy Krainak, president of VeeFriends, said the iconic brand has a special place in Vaynerchuk’s heart as a collector of toys and pinball machines.

They wrote in a press release that the deal meant more to Vaynerchuk “than you can ever imagine.”

The Series 2 collection

Earlier this year, VeeFriends shared plans to transition from NFTs to consumer products when launching the Series 2 collection.

While the first collection was created from Vaynerchuk’s marker-based doodles, the Series 2 NFTs have a more polished look with cartoon-like features.

This was done to provide a backbone for potential VeeFriends products such as clothing, games, packaged food, and more.

Vaynerchuk explained that VeeFriends needs to “stand up for intellectual property” and move towards more polished character designs for their creations.

VeeFriends

Despite the change, VeeFriends is still based on Vaynerchuk’s focus on inspirational content.

This same goal helped him become a bestselling author and social media project.

As the project ventures into new content products, Krainak said he no longer views the project as an NFT game.

“Today, I think of VeeFriends as a transmedia or multimedia company where we’re doing stories in all forms and fashions,” he explained.

“Any form or medium in which we can bring to life, if you will, the characters and traits that we’re hoping to inspire in others.”

Krainak also plans more storytelling opportunities for VeeFriends.

He wants to explore books, video games, and other formats, and says the company is in its “infancy” when it comes to creating everyday online content.

However, the goal is to make community members and the general public fall in love with VeeFriends through story-driven initiatives.

Expansion

The launch comes after the announcement in July of an initial $50 million funding round led by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.

According to Krainak, the funds will help expand after the difficult cryptocurrency market in recent months.

The transition from the NFT space to mass market products will be difficult as creators generally don’t want to downplay the value or attractiveness of NFT by targeting a wider audience.

With VeeFriends, Vaynerchuk and his team have decided to reward some NFT owners with free products such as toys and other collaborations, including clothing.

Collectors who have NFTs of characters that transform into toys can request a free version until October 18.

They also get perks at upcoming toy launch events.

“We’re looking at opportunities to reward our current community and holders as they carry on this journey with us,” said Krainak.

“We are here to build VeeFriends over the next 40 years.”

Reference:

VeeFriends Toys coming to Macy’s Toys R Us as Ethereum NFT brand expands

The NFT Twitter Hops Into Excitement with Sir Anthony Hopkins’ Public Interest in NFTs

Stephen Reynolds Stephen Reynolds on February 27, 2023

Anthony Hopkins has been diving into the NFT space for a while now, but recently he showed an interest in going even further. The Hannibal Lecter actor changed his Twitter display name to AHopkins.eth, an ENS name that leads to a crypto wallet. 

The AHopkins.eth ENS name was purchased in May, but the wallet showed no NFTs; however, after the actor advertised it through his Twitter account, images from random users started showing up.

Anthony Hopkins asked many celebrities for advice on which NFT collection to buy from, including Snoop Dogg, Reese Witherspoon, and Jimmy Fallon.

“I’m astonished by all the great NFT artists. Jumping in to acquire my first piece. Any recommendations?” Hopkins tweeted, tagging the three entertainers.

The tweet from the Oscar-winning actor generated thousands of engagements on Twitter. Including excited NFT enthusiasts who were optimistic to see a high-profile entertainer explore their world. However, it wasn’t all rainbows as critics questioned his interest in digital currency. Mocking and attacking him for investing in NFTs.

Fallon was the first to respond to Hopkins’ tweet, saying, “I love your pondering photo. There [are] a bunch of great artists out there and it’s a fun community in general. But, as the great Aaron Neville once said – I don’t know much – but I know I love you. And they may be all you need to know. DM me.”

The comedian and actor is not just a TV host. But also owns valuable NFT collections. Including the Bored Ape Yacht Club and Moonbirds.

Reese Witherspoon is a vocal advocate for Web3 tech. She has been developing TV and film projects based on the World of Women NFT collection with her studio Hello Sunshine, which she founded six years ago.

Snoop Dogg is one of the most high-profile names in crypto collectibles. He’s collected NFTs from projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club and others, diving into this space with his own collection in a collaboration with The Sandbox and the Nyan Cat meme creator. The rapper also claimed to be Cozomo de’ Medici, a NFT collector with an extensive collection of valuable NFTs.

Top Shot will make its way into mobile devices as an app

Vina Grady Vina Grady on February 17, 2023

Top Shot – Years ago, few people were unaware of non-fungible tokens, yet they are currently one of the main forces driving the Web3 sector.

NFTs didn’t start gaining popularity until thousands of new projects appeared in 2021.

The NBA Top Shot initiative, which made a ton of money, was among the most well-liked.

The NFT project wasn’t created by a studio of its own.

Instead, Top Shot, an NBA-officially licensed project, was used, and it has sold more than $1 billion.

With recent news that Top Shot would be available on mobile devices, the project is now poised to maintain its success.

The news

NBA Top Shot will soon release mobile applications on Google’s Android Play Store and Apple’s iOS App Store.

Users of Top Shot will discover that the applications offer a more streamlined method to access, purchase, and exchange digital treasures right from their fingertips.

Dapper Labs will be looking forward to the launch as the beginning of their transition to a mobile-first Web3 firm.

NBA Top Shot and the following are works of Dapper Labs:

  • The Flow blockchain
  • The NFL All Day NFT project
  • The UFC Strike NFT project

The app

The Senior VP of Sports Partnerships at Dapper Labs, Jennifer van Dijk, is upbeat about the Top Shot app’s future.

“The NBA Top Shot app will really be the start of our move to be a mobile-first company,” said van Dijk.

She also anticipates that the switch in platform would enable Dapper to advance the field of mobile in Web3 and continue their mission of attracting users to the platform.

The Top Shot app will soon be available in a limited version from Dapper Labs.

Users will be able to accomplish the following in the early stages:

  • View their NBA Top Shot NFT collection
  • Observe platform activity
  • Receive drop notifications
  • Purchase a starter pack of NFT moments

Long-term, further features will be added to the app to fully realize its potential.

Restrictions

Although it is a new practice, purchasing NFTs using mobile applications is not a novel idea.

Because Apple and Google anticipated taking a part of the sales, Web3 firms and NFT marketplaces had to limit the use of mobile applications for the exchange of NFT assets.

The barrier raises the cost of primary sales for mobile users and makes it more difficult for consumers to make secondary market transactions.

For instance, Apple’s 30% charge presents a challenge that Web3 startups have been trying to overcome since the firm made it known what it thought about NFT sales and usage.

Van Dijk claims that Dapper is aware of the issue as it builds and grows the Top Shot app.

Read also: Chainspace creates NFT portals connecting Bitcoin and Ethereum

Fee considerations

The business is also collaborating with its partners in sports leagues, Apple, and Google to forge a brighter future.

The pricing displayed when consumers buy an NBA Top Shot beginning pack through one of the mobile applications will take Dapper’s fees into account.

“When we present a price, that will include everything that would be taken out or managed by us on the back end, and the consumer will have that price,” said van Dijk.

“We’re committed also to keeping prices reasonable for fans and making them accessible.”

A sold-out release of 100,000 Top Shot starting packs was emphasized by Jennifer van Dijk in light of LeBron James’ astounding all-time scoring record achievement last week.

The online interface sells the packs for $9 apiece.

“We’re going to continue in that trend, as well, on the starter packs,” she said.

“Maybe not $9 exactly, but reasonable and affordable.”

Mobile migrations

Top Shot wants to facilitate peer-to-peer marketplace trading among users through the mobile migration, despite in-app transaction fees from Apple and Google.

Apple and Google are interested in examining the market with the appropriate partners and experiences, claims van Dijk.

She said that the NBA Top Shot initiative anticipates that the mobile app will account for over 75% of traffic.

Nevertheless, using mobile browsers to purchase and manage NFTs might be difficult.

Challenges

Dapper Labs was one of the leading innovators during the 2021 NFT boom, but it has since experienced difficulties, particularly as NFT sales have been declining.

Due to the weak NFT and cryptocurrency markets in November 2022, the company let go of more than 22% of its workers.

The move into mobile opens them a new avenue for them as they struggle to keep up with the rapidly evolving Web3 market.

According to Jennifer van Dijk, Dapper hopes that the business will unite and eventually determine its course of action.

“There’s no easy answers,” she added.

“But I think that is also the ability for us to be good partners together, and come to those things together – instead of in any way trying to go around the rules or things like that.”

“[We’ll] change together, evolve together, and I think we’ll get to a pretty good place.”

Image source: Hoops Hype

BAYC #1626 burned as it makes its new home on Bitcoin

Josh Barter Josh Barter on February 15, 2023

BAYC – The Bored Ape Yacht Club has been the highest-profile NFT since the 2021 boom.

Even after the crypto market crash last year, the BAYC NFTs continued to be one of the best-selling tokens on the market.

This year, one of the most valuable Bored Ape NFTs underwent a significant change.

Over the weekend, BAYC #1626 was permanently removed from circulation.

The news

The removal of the Bored Ape surprised many, but its owner had an explanation.

According to the Ape’s owner, they wanted to symbolically shift its underlying blockchain to Bitcoin, having originally come from Ethereum.

The NFT last went on sale on OpenSea in November 2022, selling for 108 ETH, around $432,000 at the time or $169,000 in today’s prices.

Burning NFTs

Like most NFTs, BAYC #1626’s ownership was recorded on the Ethereum network before it was burned.

NFTs can be permanently removed from circulation through burning, which typically involves sending the NFT somewhere it can’t be retrieved.

Jason Williams, the owner of BAYC #1626 said he burned it in the weekend, which means it can never be sold again on the Ethereum network.

“Essentially throwing a Lamborghini into a trash compactor – it’s kind of fun,” said Williams.

“Whether putting bloated JPEGs on Bitcoin’s base chain is smart or not is a whole ‘nother [SIC] discussion, but I think it’s going to be a lot of fun seeing how it plays out.”

Ordinals

Despite burning the NFT, Jason Williams isn’t totally sure where his Ape is now, but he speculates BAYC #1626 is now on Bitcoin.

His guess can be traced to a link to an Inscription through Ordinals.

Ordinals was created by Casey Rodarmor.

It is a project that assigns content (images and videos) to individual satoshis, the smallest unit a Bitcoin can be split to, where they will permanently reside as Inscriptions on the Bitcoin network.

While the amount of Inscriptions on Bitcoin is around the 100,000 mark, there are still marketplaces for people to trade them.

A number of buyers and sellers are currently linked through Ordinal’s Discord server.

The burn happened with a new feature for Ordinals called Teleburn, which creates a unique destination with each new Inscription so digital assets can be burned.

Teleburn

Teleburn lets users assign an asset from another network to a Bitcoin Inscription, removing it from circulation.

It transfers the token between chains, which can be seen by the creators of Teleburn.

Rob Hamilton collaborated with Rodarmor to create Teleburn, and he said:

“The idea is that you are one-way, permanently burning an asset on another chain and pointing it to the ordinal that lives on the Bitcoin chain.”

Read also: Trump NFT bounces back from its January low

Hamilton approached Rodarmor about developing the Teleburn feature last weekend at Bitcoin Park.

Bitcoin Park is a coworking space in Nashville, Tennessee, that was made for the Bitcoin community.

They collaborated after Hamilton showed Rodarmor that Williams wanted to burn BAYC #1626.

“Let’s go write some code right now,” said Rodarmor, who was excited at the prospect of burning a BAYC NFT.

Potential

BAYC #1626 wasn’t the first time they used Ordinal’s Teleburn feature.

Casey Rodarmor first tried it out on his ENS domain.

He and Hamilton later oversaw Jason Williams.

Rodarmor first came up with the term Teleburn when he combined the words teleport and burn, referencing its hasty development.

Rob Hamilton believes Teleburn will gain traction, acting as a way for people to bridge their digital collectibles.

Rodarmor is also looking to extend the feature to support assets on other chains like Tezos and Solana.

“This has now set the standard of representing an asset across the chain,” said Hamilton.

“It’s going to be the way to actually have skin in the game.”

He also alluded to how assets burned are permanently gone from the market.

Reaction

When news of the BAYC burn erupted online, Greg Solano, one of Yuga Labs’ co-founders, weighed in on the matter.

He said the Inscription linked to BAYC #1626 is an unlicensed reproduction of the original because Williams no longer owns it on the Ethereum network.

“If you transfer your Ape to an address you no longer control (even if it’s the ‘burn’ address), you have effectively given up your license,” said Solano.

He also waved off the idea that BAYC #1626 is permanently gone as it still exists on-chain.

However, people can no longer access the Ape.

Image source: Crypto Slate