Not all NFT projects are cooky-eyed apes and frogs. Technically speaking, NFTs aren’t all that much different than the Mona Lisa was back then. These projects have more value and utility than quirky designs and a storefront on OpenSea.
Digital art is the wave of the future, but the question is why. Why does it seem like everyone’s changing their profile picture to those cooky-eyed apes and frogs? The answer is simple, yet complicated: NFTs are the beginning of a new world we’re all collectively creating.
From distributed wealth to innovative applications, these tokens have proven time and time again to be a major catalyst in both economical and societal transformation. There’s always more than what meets the eye, but NFTs are far more than just art projects.
While yes, the cooky-eyed apes and frogs exist, there are many NFTs worth following–many with applied utility. The best part is that a ticket to the future may actually be a token, a non-fungible token. Here are 5 of the coolest NFT projects that prove just that.
1. Vee Friends
It’s no surprise that Gary Vaynerchuk’s Vee Friends made it on this list. With a major influence in the NFT space, the guru manifested the project as a platform for his supporters to come together as a community.
While you might think the effortless scribbles are merely superficial on the surface, Vee Friends actually has some utility. Each NFT comes with some sort of physical engagement ranging anywhere from having dinner with Gary to playing a live game of UNO with a group of other NFT holders.
Where once supporters could only wish for a day to interact with their role models, NFTs now make this possible and within reach. The connection between creators and investors is actually quite mutual. And for other gurus in the space, utility NFTs are indeed a revenue-generating project.
2. Flyfish Club
As mentioned, Gary Vaynerchuk is quite the pioneer and advocate for the NFT space. To add to his efforts, he launched Flyfish Club in August of 2021, an innovative approach to utility NFTs and the first NFT restaurant to ever exist.
Seemingly a strange concept, this project is actually a perfect representation of the potential NFTs have now and in the future. Whereas Vee Friends took a more exclusive approach, Flyfish Club follows inclusivity, accessible to the general public.
As the first of its kind, Flyfish Club enforces the purchase of NFTs by requiring them for entry into their restaurants or participation in their pre-launch events. Better yet, one’s access to these occasions relies on which NFT they own–adding much more value to NFTs digitally and physically.
3. Kibatsu Mecha
Whenever you see NFTs in high numbers, it’s easy to think they were computer-generated. With so much time to be spent in designing the artwork, it seems impossible to handcraft each one on its own.
For Kibatsu Mecha, the unlikely case is actually true. With 2,222 unique hand-generated characters, artist, Jerry Liu, shares his passion for animation using NFTs. Each of the pieces is actually an integral component of Megacity Kibatu, an imaginative story world developed by the artist.
To add value to its rare collectibles, Jerry introduced 7 combinations of traits across his work. The goal here was to help the rare NFTs stand out by carrying their own unique traits in comparison to the others. And after being sold out quickly, it seems creativity won in the world of NFTs.
4. Invisible Friends
The beauty behind NFTs is that there’s a lot of potential for creatives. Animator, Markus Magnusson is behind Invisible Friends, a 5,000 animated character project. What makes this project so unique is the complexity behind the designs.
With extensive expertise in animation, Markus crafted each of the 5,000 characters through a complex sequence. Each character hit a floor price of 12 ETH ($29k) just upon their launch date. The best part about the project is that it was sold out–again proving NFTs to be highly beneficial for creatives.
5. Adam Bomb Squad
Besides creatives and gurus, NFTs are also a great asset for brands, especially hype beast brands like The Hundreds. In efforts to take their branding to the next level, the brand released the Adam Bomb Squad, a graphic digital art project recycling their own branding.
For many streetwear brands, stirring hype in innovative ways is necessary to maintain steam. As a direct representation of their visual branding, each bomb anoints NFT holders with exclusive brand perks like free merch or early access to product launches.
Not only was this proven to be a successful adventure in harnessing their brand identity, but it’s also a great tactic to experiment with. Hoping to chronicle their brand identity throughout the project, the Adam Bomb Squad is just the start of the merge of virtual and physical branded NFTs.
With a little digging, NFTs have immense potential for a wide variety of use cases and creators. No matter if you’re a brand or creative, these projects have real utility beyond cool designs. As a ticket into the future, you can expect to own an NFT for a good reason you’ve yet to find out.
Looking to create your own NFTs? We’ve got you covered. Start here.
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