#79 The $100,000 Opepen Takeover We Didn’t See Coming
A Digital Celebration Of Art & Culture
GM - this is The Snapshot, edition #79.
Welcome to the new subscribers this week - we are now at 1,902 subscribers!
I write about NFTs/crypto, and solopreneurship in web3.
This is what I’ve got for you this week:
This Week In NFT/Crypto World - $2.5M Ferrari sold as an NFT
Sponsored Post - Mucho Love Receives $159k Funding With Lil Help
Notable Sales - Hoodie CryptoPunk Season
Thought Piece - The $100,000 Opepen Takeover We Didn’t See Coming
For sponsorship enquires, please DM me on Twitter.
Disclaimer: The content covered in this newsletter is not to be considered as investment advice. It is for informational and educational purposes only.
Have a great day,
B
This Week In NFT/Crypto World - $2.5M Ferrari sold as an NFT
$2.5M Ferrari sold as an NFT
A company called Altr is bringing luxury IRL items on chain - and just sold this Ferrari for $2.5M…as an NFT.
Why would anyone do this?
Well, many people want to invest in high quality assets but do not have the ability to / want the hassle of looking after the assets physically.
As such, Altr will store the high-value items in safe storage facilities until the NFT holder decides to redeem them.
No excuses to not get the Ferrari now (!)
Doodles to launch IRL experience in Chicago
Doodles, a well-loved NFT IP, has decided to go all-in on IRL experiences.
They will open this 3,500 square foot store in Chicago where you can
“spend time in the Flower Forest under 12-foot-tall daisies, and unleash your creativity though drawings, crafts, and more”
“journey through the galaxy as Space Doodles comes to life in the Crash Site.”
shop exclusive co-branded collection of apparel & accessories.
What does this have to do with NFTs?
They are going to provide an “OG Holder Grand Opening” and an “Elevated Ticketing Experience” for the underlying NFT holders.
This is how NFTs will be used more and more to unlock exclusive perks.
McFarlane Toys announces digital partnership with Warner Brothers
Pretty cool to see “multiple exclusive DC drops” coming out soon.
These NFTs will be on Polygon.
The Polygon BD team has been crushing it: they have now onboarded Starbucks, 7-Eleven, and Reddit.
There will be many more to come.
Jackson Pollock goes digital
The famous abstract expressionist painter whose works sell for millions of dollars has gone digital.
The release included four curated pieces that document the artist's marks that extended beyond the canvas edge.
Each work has only 125 pieces. Limited-edition prints are hand-numbered, stamped by the Jackson Pollock Studio, and include a matching digital artifact.
Very cool to see how iconic artists’ work will move on chain - there will be more of this!
Sponsored Post - Mucho Love Receives $159k Funding With Lil Help
Lil Nouns DAO has sponsored Mucho Love’s $159,000 proposal to elevate Nouns as a global beacon of positivity.
Mucho Love operate as a social impact platform funded solely by NFTs.
Why did the team win this proposal?
Mucho Love has impacted over 5,800 people, 2,400 children, 700 families, and 340 dogs, and has engaged with 5 local institutions and 100+ volunteers.
This video is so cool and explains how they have been doing so much good with their funds.
Lil Nouns played a crucial role by sponsoring this proposal.
With 17 Nouns in their treasury, Lil Nouns are able to (i) sponsor brilliant proposals and bring them to a vote; and (ii) use those Nouns to vote for your proposal.
Great to see Lil Nouns back this winner!
If you are curious about contributing to a cutting-edge DAO and getting paid to bring your ideas to life:
Check out the successful proposal for more details or reply to this email with any questions you’d like me to answer.
Notable Sales - Hoodie CryptoPunk Season
CryptoPunk, Hoodie - 165 ETH ($312,300)
Pudgy Penguins, Golden - 69 ETH ($130,000)
CryptoPunk, Hoodie - 220 ETH ($420,000)
CryptoPunk, Hoodie - 179.69 ETH ($343,000)
DeeKay, Am I Dreaming? - 52.5 ETH ($100,000)
Thought Piece - The $100,000 Opepen Takeover We Didn’t See Coming
Introduction
This week a creator made almost $100,000 because Jack Butcher redirected “some economic energy” to him.
This is the story of Opepen, ThreadGuy and Jack Butcher: a story about art, culture, and brilliant digital marketing.
I credit Matt O Brien for conducting this research, drafting the original twitter thread, and helping me to finalise this piece. (Follow him as a Jack Butcher-art-expert!)
The Offer
At the end of last week a huge collector, Bored Elon Musk, generously offered one of NFT-twitter’s favourite sons, Thread Guy, an Opepen 001 NFT valued at a whopping $40,000.
The condition?
To display this Opepen 001 NFT as his Twitter profile picture for three months, effectively translating to a generous stipend of $13,000 per month or $3,333 per week.
The Motive
Bored Elon is the largest Opepen holder (owning 725 NFTs).
As such, he has a substantial incentive to see the success of Opepen and wants to see more prominent people holding and using the NFT (which is often used as a profile picture).
By encouraging Thread Guy, who commands the attention of over 100,000 followers, to don the Opepen as his profile picture, he obviously believed it would lead to a significant surge in awareness and attention towards Opepen— a win-win scenario for both parties.
The Response
Following much contemplation, Thread Guy declined the tempting offer, leaving an enticing $40,000 on the table.
However, what unfolded next took the Twitter community by surprise.
Thread Guy went on to alter his profile picture to a custom 1/1 Opepen, themed around his character, crafted by none other than Jack Butcher himself. This Opepen was based on Thread Guy's original mutant ape profile picture, not an NFT, and was made just “for the culture.”
The Opepen based on the Mutant
The Aftermath
In celebration of this unexpected turn of events, Jack Butcher introduced an open edition mint, enabling collectors to mint this custom Opepen for a mere $2.
The response was overwhelming, with collectors minting almost 50,000 of these NFTs to date, generating almost $100,000 for Thread Guy.
Collectors worldwide continue to partake in this event as a gesture of support for Thread Guy — one of the top content creators in Web3, known for his daily contributions to the ecosystem.
The Impact
This incident has led to Opepen dominating the crypto Twitter timeline, with popular digital artist Beeple dedicating an everyday artwork to capture this moment.
Opepen Army, By Beeple
What does the future hold?
This event underscores a tremendous win for the Web3 ecosystem: a low mint price of $2, enabling widespread participation; the rewarding of a content creator for their efforts; and an explosive growth in brand awareness for Opepen over the past week.
The recent Opepen episode serves as a masterclass in Web3 marketing, reminding us of the extraordinary possibilities that await in the converging realms of social media, cryptocurrency, and digital art.
Have a great day,
B
Disclaimer: The content covered in this newsletter is not to be considered as investment advice. It is for informational and educational purposes only.
I hold some of the NFTs mentioned in these newsletters
Love this week's newsletter - The TG Opepen section is so easy to digest!
Awesome as usual!