There has been a lot of talk lately about blue-chip NFTs via Twitter, so I figured I would write up my thoughts on them. In traditional terms when talking about a blue-chip asset the definition reads:
“A blue-chip refers to an established, stable, and well-recognized corporation. Blue-chip stocks are seen as relatively safer investments, with a proven track record of success and stable growth.”
Now does this sound like some of the projects that dropped 2 weeks or even a couple of months ago?
The answer in most cases would be no. Well, you may argue that NFTs are currently moving at 2x crypto speed and I would agree. This still does not constitute the classification of a blue-chip NFT just because your asset went 10x-100x in a matter of days/weeks. If we take a look at the definition above, while it may not totally apply to crypto, we see the words established, stable, and well recognized. Right off the bat, I can write off most of the recent projects as not falling under the established classification. This does not mean that I do not think these projects could eventually reach blue-chip status, they just are not at the moment. So what, in the NFT space, is established, well recognized, and somewhat stable (volatility and rapid price discovery can make it hard to fit this definition). See my tweet below:
While I will not go into detail about each asset mentioned above, I hope you find something in common about the names in this list. For one, something you should recognize is that they are all pioneering individuals/projects in the space.
- Autoglyphs: first on-chain generative art pioneered by the notorious Larva Labs
- Cryptopunks: one of the earliest and most relevant NFTs on Ethereum, pr-dates the ERC-721 Standard, free to claim, pioneered by Larva Labs
- XCOPY: the second artist to mint on SuperRare, unmistakable style/gifs, memetic titles of artwork tap into crypto culture, will be seen as one of the founding fathers of crypto art
- Other OG Artists: fit a similar narrative to XCOPY in that they were early creators on many of the platforms we use today, unmistakable styles, etc.
- Founder Cats (Cryptokitties 1–100): first 100 ERC-721 tokens created, CK was a project that brought up many of the OGs we see today, Dapper is a pioneer in the space
Who I forgot:
- Avastars: fully on-chain avatars with innovative mechanics
- Other OG artists: JOY, Josie Bellini, and Lost Robbies by Robbie Barrat
Thoughts on some of the honorable mentions:
- RarePepes (Nakamoto and sub 50 issuances): these are no doubt blue chips just hard to fit in the top 5. Personally, I believe these will be looked at as hardcore collector items rather than something that takes mainstream…like punks.
- Artblocks (Ringers, Fidenzas, Archetypes, Squiggles, Eternal Pumps): is for sure an innovative platform and pushing the space forward in unique ways. The collector gets to be part of the artistic process through the way they handle minting (based on transaction hash). It just feels that every drop on the platform dilutes the other (in the case of works based purely on aesthetics). For example, there are always debates/raves about which Artblocks drop is aesthetically pleasing and it is always comparable to the last — this *project y* is the next *project x*. Metaphor: Artblocks is the ecosystem/industry and the drops are entities trying to eat away at the last one’s value. Which entities will win in the industry…I do not know?
Overall, I hope this helps you with your journey into the NFT space. In my opinion, if the project is backed by nothing but aesthetics at the moment (not pioneering or innovative) then it is up for debate. I know that history will remember the pioneers. There is always the next “good-looking/shiny toy” that steals people's attention. History (a story) + Pioneers/Innovators + Aesthetics = A Good Chance of Success. At the moment, I can say that the assets mentioned above meet both the established and well-recognized criteria…at least in the NFT space.
Disclaimer: The information found in this blog post is not meant to be used, understood, and or construed as financial or investment advice. I am not a financial advisor, accountant, or attorney. The contents in the post should be used for informational purposes only and are my personal opinion. May be invested in the assets mentioned above.
