The potential of NFTs seems immense.
You may have heard of CryptoKitties. They broke onto the scene in 2017 and quickly became a craze. One eventually sold for $140,000. Largely, they put NFTs on the map.
2020 saw NFTs take off even more. You've likely heard of Garbage Pail Kids. They are back, now as NFTs. You've likely heard of POGS. They are are now KOGS, as NFTs. And, there's more. The future shows much, much greater things for NFTs. Here's a terrific CoinDesk article by Jeff Wilser that explains a lot.
There are use cases.
Many NFTs are simply for having and holding. Like baseball cards, Garbage Pail Kids, Pogs or Kogs, they are for collectors to collect. And simply holding, looking, trading, and selling is certainly its own important use case. But, there are more ways to use NFTs.
This race car NFT sold for $111,000 (article here). But, aside from simply looking at the pretty car, it can be raced in a virtual space. Later, if the owner grows bored with the car, he could sell the NFT/car to someone else...just like in the physical world.
Had a very enjoyable chat with @ysiu @xanderatallah and @F1DeltaTime 1-1-1 #NFT owner @MetaKovan about *that* auction, and why digital assets are valuable - both financially and emotionally #podcast https://t.co/9MBXCQ1VWE
— jon jordan 🇹🇼 (@blockchaingmg) November 11, 2020
Run some numbers.
The numbers behind NFTs are large. And they are growing.
- On the FLOW blockchain, NBA Top Shot has sold $300,000 in basketball "moments", article here.
- The top five Ethereum-only NFT exchanges is currently trading around $400,000 each day, view the past 24 hours totals here.
- The New York Times cites a report valuing the NFT industry at $250 million (February 2021). CNBC estimates that as a quadrupuling during 2020. Forbes cites nonfungible.com as assessing the NFT industry at $400 million.
This is amazing considering that almost no one had even heard of NFTS back only in 2017 until Crypto Kitties emerged. - Forbes reported on a dropout DJ who sold $11.7 million worth of NFTs in one night.
Gauge the interest.
Interest in, and awareness of, NFTs seems to be spiking.
- Do your own search. Go to a crypto news outlet, like CoinTelegraph or Coindesk. In their search bar, do a search for NFTs. There are now almost daily articles. And, most of the articles discuss growth.
- Have you heard of "DeFi" (decentralized finance), the darling of early-to-mid 2020? With deFi, instead of getting a loan from a centralized bank, you might get a loan from a blockchain's smart contract? No extra costs or surprises and no middleman fees needed. Well, now, there is beginning to be NFTfi - NFT finance, another article here.
- Just like the Oscars, NFTs now have their own awards at NFTawards.org.
- Artist "Beeple" sold an NFT for $6.6 million. And legendary Christie's auctions is getting into the NFT game. Article here.
- This "Unconfirmed" podcast by Laura Shin offers a great look into why NFTs are appealing to everyday people.
- The Phantasma blockchain is cross-chain with Ethereum and NEO. On Phantasma's Ghost Market, it's possible to create a "smart NFT". This means that certain information can be "infused" into the NFT...only the NFT buyer/owner can see this secret information. It's an Easter egg with a surprise inside. Personally, I think something amazing will be built on this ability, either on Phantasma or elsewhere.
Watch the things happening.
Interest in, and awareness of, NFTs seems to be spiking.
- Genies allows users to make virtual avatars of themselves, then use those avatars in various ways and places. For instance, Justin Bieber announced a Christmas album with his Genies avatar. It stands to figure that many of his 113 million Twitter followers will soon be wanting to make their own.
Rockin Around the Christmas Tree. Listen only on @AmazonMusic https://t.co/k8ZSl2txwi pic.twitter.com/IahfEcHKgF
— Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) November 12, 2020 -
Jack Dorsey of Twitter posted on March 5, 2021 that he's selling the world's first tweet as an NFT. By, March 6, the bidding was up to $2.5 million.
— jack (@jack) March 6, 2021
See the auction status here - NFT news comes daily now. Here are some articles: