NFT Weekly News #5
15th May- 21th May, 2023
NFT News Weekly Update #5
(05/15/2023-05/21/2023)
GM
Welcome to NFT Weekly News by Threekeyslab🗝️🗝️🗝️. Here you can find the latest curated news⚠️ in the NFT world. Every week, we aim to provide a selection of the most interesting news and events that are fostering the development of the NFT world.
The NFT field is constantly evolving, and this article will review last week's Top NFT news. Let's take a look👀together!
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Big News 🔝
📌NFT| GRAILS Part I Auctions💵 Exceed Estimates at Sotheby's Contemporary Day Sale (May 20)
Note from Three Keys team📝: "At present, the buyer remains unidentified, although rumors suggest it's a family office not deeply involved in NFT circles. Tyler Hobbs' Fidenza and Larva Labs' CryptoPunk are part of the Three Keys collections"
The sales at Sotheby's Contemporary Day Sale for GRAILS Part I, a curated selection of digital art from the 3AC collection, exceeded the initial estimates set by the auction house. The seven items from 3AC's collection fetched $2,482,850 in total, far exceeding the initial estimates of $555,000 at the low end and $815,000 at the high end.
📌Web2 | Apple🍎📱 is expected to unveil its mixed reality headset at the WWDC in June (May 19)
Apple is set to unveil its much-anticipated AR/VR “mixed” reality headset at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June. To ensure a successful launch and encourage user adoption, the company is reportedly working on dedicated sports, gaming, wellness, and collaboration apps. Apple plans to adapt iPad apps for the headset, allowing users to access existing App Store content through the device’s 3D interface.
📌NFT|Blur added BAYC and MAYC to Blend lending protocol 📈(May 15)
In a May 15 blog post, the flagship NFT marketplace confirmed adding Bored Ape Yacht Club and Mutant Ape Yacht Club to its Blend lending platform. NFT users can now borrow up to 40 ETH using their BAYC and MAYC with only 1 ETH.
Market Update 📣
To find out more about the notable NFT sales for the week, please click on the link below.
Other News 👀
AIGC | "AI does not need consciousness to threaten the survival of humanity" -- Yuval Noah Harari, author of "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind," in his speech at the Frontier Forum (May 15)
At the Frontier Forum, Harari underscored the profound impact AI will have on humanity's future. He suggested that AI, capable of rapid self-learning and improvement, might change ecosystems and introduce inorganic life forms to Earth. Even AI's developers don't fully comprehend its abilities, such as manipulating and generating language. Harari emphasized that AI doesn't need consciousness or physicality to pose a threat to humanity.
NFT | NFT Influencer Ben.eth Rakes in $7 Million in PSYOP Meme Coin Presale (May 19)
Ben (@eth_ben), a once small NFT influencer, shifted persona during memecoin season, launching his coin $BEN, which saw success after Bitboy's endorsement. He then announced $PSYOP, leveraging $BEN's success, and raised $6.9M in presale. Despite controversy and potential legal issues, Ben's actions gained significant attention within the crypto community
Web2 | Sam Altman's Worldcoin project incentivizes a black market for biometric data taken from people in developing nations (May 18)
Sam Altman's Worldcoin project, which scans individuals' irises in return for potential crypto rewards, is now confronting issues of abuse. Reports suggest people in China, where sign-ups are not permitted, have been buying iris scans from those in Africa and Southeast Asia to evade restrictions. This has given rise to a phenomenon known as "eyeball speculation," as reported by BlockBeats.
NFT | Pudgypenguins toys reached $500K+ volume within 2 days of Amazon release (May 21)
With the launch of its new “Phygital” Toy Collection & Experience on e-commerce giant Amazon, the popular NFT collection Pudgy Penguins saw explosive interest and sales. According to project CEO Luca Netz, Pudgy Penguins saw over $500,000 in purchases over the first two days, surpassing 20,000 individual toys sold.
AIGC | OpenAI launches a free ChatGPT app for iOS (May 19)
OpenAI has launched a free ChatGPT app for iOS users in the U.S., with an international rollout planned. This follows six months after the initial release of ChatGPT online, which instigated a tech industry race to develop AI capable of generating engaging content based on user prompts.
NFT | Azuki Introduces Communities Page (May 19)
Azuki has launched a Communities page on its website. It serves as a portal for its 10,000 Azukis and 19,944 Beanz members to discover smaller, likeminded groups. The page provides summaries, activity durations, and social media links for each sub-group.
NFT | NFT Trading on Smart TVs? LG Electronics Seeks Patent (May 16)
LG Electronics has filed a patent for a blockchain-enabled Smart TV, allowing users to trade NFTs. The application was recently made public in the WIPO's global database.
NFT | Football Star Alex Zinchenko Takes Center Stage in ImprobableIo’s Metaverse Test Event (May 21)
This past weekend, ImprobableIo orchestrated an exhilarating live event in the metaverse, showcasing Arsenal Football Club’s star, Alex Zinchenko. Collaborating with Yuga Labs on the ‘Otherside’ Metaverse, ImprobableIo successfully executed this event as part of their ongoing live testing endeavors.
Web3 | STEPN Integrates Apple Pay (May 21)
Web3 move-to-earn game STEPN is integrating payments service Apple Pay as a fiat onramp for in-app purchases in a bid to make its app more widely accessible.
NFT | ApeCoin DAO Approves Proposal to Boost Bored Ape NFTs, APE Ecosystem Growth (May 18)
ApeCoin DAO has approved a proposal (AIP-209) to launch an Accelerator for incubating projects using ApeCoin (APE) tokens. The initiative aims to enhance the value of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFT collection and other projects utilizing ApeCoin.