GM

Welcome to the 22 people that joined yesterday.

We have a spicy post today, but if you don't have time to read everything, here's a key update for our upcoming pass:

• Mint date: early next week

• WL Deadline: Sunday, May 14th at 7 PM PDT

• WL signup: here

We're still seeing a bunch of people that earned WL but haven't given us their wallets yet.

I respect the procrastination, but let’s get those in.

More info on Mint/Watch lists HERE.

It’s time to pay attention

Someone recently asked me what I did for work. And I tried my best to avoid saying anything that had to do with NFTs.

The brand is just toxic right now, and it’s simply not worth getting into with a stranger.

So I told them something along the lines of “Digital Art Curator”. And yeah, they were clearly confused, but crisis averted.

But this begs a very important question – why are we still here?

I mean, people on Twitter are saying NFTs are dead (for the 300th time), and volume has cratered, and people are flocking to shitcoins or AI or whatever else – so why are we doubling down and spending even MORE time on NFTs than ever before?

Let’s take a quick flashback to May 2021. Surprisingly, the number of daily wallets buying NFTs was pretty similar to what we have now, around 5-10k.

Volume was also more or less at the same levels. And just like today, the internet was doing its best to ridicule this small corner of crypto Twitter.

So, much of this resembles what the space looked like two years ago.

But there are two major differences today versus May 2021.

1. NFT collectors in 2023 are way more pessimistic.

2. Big brands are taking NFTs way more seriously.

Why are collectors so depressed?

Partly because their bags have heavily declined in value over the last 12 months.

It’s hard for them to unsee that a Moonbird was once worth 30 eth and now trades for 10% of that, and when you’re faced with this kind of Galactic L it’s easier to throw your hands up and say it’s all over.

Then there’s the fact that the space is evolving. The worst-kept secret is that many of these collectors were simply profit maxis, and now we’re seeing a move towards large ecosystems that don’t obsess over profit (e.g. Reddit free avatars, Nike soulbound tokens).

This is a much better direction, and it makes us super excited, but it’s not what the pure profit traders want to talk about.

So when they say NFTs are dead they really mean “low supply ponzis are dead”.

Now, let’s take a look at reality.

Here are some of the things people were excited about in Summer 2021:

1. Cool Cats

2. Bored Apes

3. Veefriends

4. Gutter Cat Gang

5. Meebits

6. Punks Comic

7. Hashmasks

8. Bulls on the Block

9. Mooncats

10. Wicked Craniums

Look, no offense to these pioneers, but this was clearly the stone age for NFTs – people are basically sad because most of their cave paintings are NGMI.

In comparison, here are a few projects that are actively being built now:

1. Nike

2. Reddit

3. Amazon

4. Starbucks

5. Adidas

6. Square Enix

7. Maplestory

8. Puma

9. Midnight Society (Dr. Disrespect)

10. Ticketmaster

These are not theoretical “maybe one day” projects – most of them have already launched or are deep in production. And they’re all trying to sell millions of NFTs to millions of people.

It blows my mind that people are leaving the space at the exact moment when real traction is beginning to take place.

Some other trends we expect to see

• AI NFTs. Opepen, Post-Photography, and $TURBO are just the start of a huge collision between crypto and AI.

• Ordinals. People are waking up to the power of inscribing NFTs on the largest/most secure network, and even BTC maxis are coming around.

• Crypto Gaming. Good games take time to make, and we’re now seeing releases that began development years ago.

• Large ecosystems. Soon platforms like Nike and Reddit will start building real network effects, something we’ve only seen at a tiny scale in NFTs so far.

• IRL minting. We’re seeing NFTs pop up at more events, and I think this genre might get a lot more popular as a way to reward engagement.

• Trad art collectooors. Major art institutions will continue to legitimize NFT art, like LACMA and the Pompidou have already started to.

• Niche experiments. We’re always just one good idea away from a new meta, and tools like ChatGPT and Manifold are letting more people get weird.

The best part is it’s never been easier to collect great NFTs. There are simultaneously fewer people paying attention to the space and more big projects coming in.

And these projects will produce MANY highly desired assets – it’s inevitable.

We’re gonna help

We noticed one more thing that definitely HAS NOT changed since 2021, and that’s NFT discovery and curation. It’s still garbage, just like when I first entered the space.

So even though it might get a lot easier to acquire hype NFTs this year, if you don’t hear about them, or get context for why they might be interesting in the first place, then you’re just wasting time wandering in the dark.

That’s why we’re showing up every day. There’s no denying that energy has dropped recently, but we see this as just the intermission between the end of one cycle and the start of another.

And we plan to be on the frontlines the entire way.

Our next phase is the Mint or Skip Genesis Pass. Today we’re officially announcing that it’s minting early next week.

Tomorrow we’ll be giving out a lot more details regarding new features. In the meantime, sign up to get on the WL here.

Stay tuned!

NOTE: These drops are lightly curated. Our only requirement is that they have recognizable founders. As usual, DYOR. To learn more go here.

Migration by Giant Swan

ClickCreate is back with their second May drop: Migration by VR sculptor Giant Swan. The mint starts today at 3 PM EDT on ClickCreate's website.

This colorful 3D work has 180 pieces, with 20 going to the team and 160 available for public minting. The first phase, at 0.042 ETH, is fully allocated for SubPass holders. If supplies last after 24 hours, public minting opens at 0.069 ETH.

Rareboy Medallions

Did someone say U-u-utility?

Rareboy, an NFT tools platform by Postmates co-founder Sam Osci, is launching its first NFT drop, Medallions, next week.

These lifetime-access medallions will provide holders with yet-to-be-specified access to select platform features.

The first mint phase is fully allowlisted (eligible wallets on their website) and starts on May 16th at 6:00 PM EDT. This phase will last 24 hours before opening to the public. Price and supply details are yet to be released.

SIGHTSEERS l PERIMETER TOWN by Norman Harman

Your favorite artist’s favorite artist Norman Harman is back on sovrn.art with a follow-up to his original SIGHTSEERS.

This collection continues to showcase Harman’s signature AI glitch art, but sneak peeks hint at a more dystopian story this go-round.

Mint date, supply, and price aren’t known so I’ll be watching the sovrn.art Twitter for any relevant updates.

THE MINT LIST

1. Nike Our Force 1. Digital shoe drop from the global consumer brand.

2. Project Animus. RTFKT's biggest launch since Clone-X.

3. FewoWorld. New PFP by Fewocious, a rising star in the art world.

4. Symbiogenesis. Square Enix's upcoming gaming NFT.

5. 10KFT PFP. Drop from a team that includes Yuga and Beeple.

6. Ether. Anime PFP collection by viii, an artist with a cult following.

7. BIG INC. New free mint from the goblintown team.

8. Memories of Digital Data by Tanimoto. Appealing AB Curated.

9. Dimensionals - EVE. Free gaming PFP from doxxed studio.

10. Garbage Friends. New PFP from the creator of Invisible Friends.