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Dans cet épisode spécial, John est l'invité du jour et vient nous dévoiler les coulisses de la 4e édition de la Non Fungible Conference (NFC), qui se tiendra du 4 au 6 juin 2025 à Lisbonne. Cette édition s'annonce encore plus ambitieuse et éclectique, avec huit événements en un seul et des thématiques allant de l'art digital à la culture meme, en passant par les crypto-stamps, les jeux blockchain et l'univers Telegram.Parmi les temps forts :* Une scène immersive entièrement repensée avec des performances live inédites.* Des artistes majeurs comme Snowfro, Claire Silver, OSF, Fuckrender, Agoria ou encore Justin Aversano.* Des initiatives autour des PFPs, des ordinals, des meme coins, et le lancement de l'AI Movie Festival.* Une journée dédiée à l'univers Telegram avec le soutien de la TON Foundation.* Le lancement du “Tonight Show” version Web3 animé par Redbeard / Benny Big.* Des talks avec plus de 250 intervenants sur 4 scènes parallèles.* Des expositions dans des containers d'art en plein air (OpenSea, Tezos, Magic Eden…).* Et le 3eme jour, une beach party sur la plage de Caparica .John revient aussi sur les défis du marché NFT actuel, sur l'évolution de l'événement vers la pop culture numérique, et sur sa volonté farouche de créer un rendez-vous résilient et durable pour tout l'écosystème.
Andres del Vecchio and Anubis3100, besides being unbelievable craftsmen and artists, are brilliant critics, crypto art sages. These two join Max to discuss Andres' "DYBBUK MASQUES," a series of 1/1/x works that might very well portend a change in crypto art's very market dynamics. Or it could just be a marker of Andres' unique talents. "Artist-led PFPs" redefined, connecting with collectors, the appeal of digital avatars, and much more await you in today's episode.
Knee pain, or patellofemoral pain syndrome, can be a thorn in the side for so many runners. Much like shin splints, it can present many ways, all of them frustrating. Nathan and David get together to provide some clarity on this frustrating injury. They look at the anatomy of the knee, common PFPS symptoms, keys for rehab, and of course, shoes. Get your DOR Merch: https://doctors-of-running.myspreadshop.com/Check out our friends at Skratch and save 25% on your first order with code DOR24!Chapters0:00 - Intro4:58 - An overview of knee anatomy8:46 - What all is encompassed in patello-femoral pain?18:52 - Understanding the balance between load & capacity30:24 - How do our mechanics influence PFPS?41:44 - How can shoes influence PFPS?46:17 - Wrap-up
In this episode, we dive into patellar tendinopathy—how to recognize it, differentiate it from other knee conditions, and key clinical findings to look for. Using a realistic patient case, we go step by step through subjective history, clinical testing, and differential diagnosis to improve your assessment skills.What You'll Learn:How to identify patellar tendinopathy based on patient historyKey risk factors and common populations affectedThe difference between tendinitis and tendinosisHow to rule in and rule out conditions like PFPS, Hoffa's fat pad irritation, and quadriceps tendinopathyThe hallmark signs that should immediately put patellar tendinopathy on your radarNext week, we will cover the latest evidence on treatment and management strategies.Support the showWhy PT Snacks Podcast?This podcast is your go-to for bite-sized, practical info designed for busy, overwhelmed Physical Therapists and students who want to build confidence in their foundational knowledge without sacrificing life's other priorities. Stay Connected! Never miss an episode—hit follow now! Got questions? Email me at ptsnackspodcast@gmail.com or leave feedback HERE. Join the email list HERE On Instagram? Find unique content at @dr.kasey.hankins! Need CEUs Fast?Time and resources short? MedBridge has you covered: Get over $100 off a subscription with code PTSNACKSPODCAST: MedBridge Students: Save 75% with code PTSNACKSPODCASTSTUDENT—a full year of unlimited access for less!(These are affiliate links, but I only recommend MedBridge because it's genuinely valuable.) Optimize Your Patient Care with Tindeq Looking for a reliable dynamometer to enhance your clinical measurements? Tindeq helps you track and measure...
In Part 2, we focus on evidence-based treatments for Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFP). Learn effective exercise strategies, movement retraining, and what the research says about manual therapy and taping to address muscle weakness, movement dysfunctions, and mobility impairments. This episode gives you the tools to help your patients recover and get back to activity faster. If you missed Part 1, be sure to catch up on how to assess PFP!Resources mentioned:Best practice guide for patellofemoral pain based on synthesis of a systematic review, the patient voice and expert clinical reasoning.Patellofemoral Pain Clinical Practice GuidelineSupport the showWhy PT Snacks Podcast?This podcast is your go-to for bite-sized, practical info designed for busy, overwhelmed Physical Therapists and students who want to build confidence in their foundational knowledge without sacrificing life's other priorities. Stay Connected! Never miss an episode—hit follow now! Got questions? Email me at ptsnackspodcast@gmail.com or leave feedback HERE. On Instagram? Find unique content at @dr.kasey.hankins! Need CEUs Fast?Time and resources short? MedBridge has you covered: Get over $100 off a subscription with code PTSNACKSPODCAST: MedBridge Students: Save 75% with code PTSNACKSPODCASTSTUDENT—a full year of unlimited access for less!(These are affiliate links, but I only recommend MedBridge because it's genuinely valuable.) Want to Support the Show?Help me keep creating free content by: Sharing the podcast with someone who'd benefit. Contributing directly via the link below (optional, but deeply appreciated). Thanks for tuning in—your support makes this...
In Part 1 of our PFP series, we break down how to assess and diagnose Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome effectively. Learn about the key symptoms, the impairment-based classification, and how to use this framework to guide your treatment. We'll cover the best assessment tools, from subjective history to functional tests, to help you identify the root causes of PFP and set the stage for targeted interventions.Articles mentioned:Patellofemoral Pain (Clinical Practice Guideline)Best practice guide for patellofemoral pain based on synthesis of a systematic review, the patient voice and expert clinical reasoningSupport the showWhy PT Snacks Podcast?This podcast is your go-to for bite-sized, practical info designed for busy, overwhelmed Physical Therapists and students who want to build confidence in their foundational knowledge without sacrificing life's other priorities. Stay Connected! Never miss an episode—hit follow now! Got questions? Email me at ptsnackspodcast@gmail.com or leave feedback HERE. On Instagram? Find unique content at @dr.kasey.hankins! Need CEUs Fast?Time and resources short? MedBridge has you covered: Get over $100 off a subscription with code PTSNACKSPODCAST: MedBridge Students: Save 75% with code PTSNACKSPODCASTSTUDENT—a full year of unlimited access for less!(These are affiliate links, but I only recommend MedBridge because it's genuinely valuable.) Want to Support the Show?Help me keep creating free content by: Sharing the podcast with someone who'd benefit. Contributing directly via the link below (optional, but deeply appreciated). Thanks for tuning in—your support makes this...
Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS) is one of the most common knee issues in dancers. In this episode, I go through what exactly PFPS actually is, why it's so common in dancers and some of the key concepts in treating PFPS in dancers.Learn more about Erika Mayall:Follow me on Instagram: @dancephysioerikaLearn more about me on my website: https://www.allegroperformance.comSign up for my newsletter: Click hereSend me an email: hello@allegroperformance.com
Next week global leaders will convene in Cali, Colombia for an important meeting: the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UN's Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP16). You're probably more familiar with the climate COP that happens every year, but the biodiversity COP is a critical forum for addressing the loss of nature. Two years ago, at COP15 in Montreal, the nations of the world agreed to a new Global Biodiversity Framework, which set a goal to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030. Next week's meeting in Colombia is the first opportunity to take stock of progress and commit to implementation at scale. Joining the show today to tell us more about COP16 and what's at stake is Lucía Ruiz, WWF's director for conservation areas. Lucía will be attending the conference in Colombia next week and is going to help us understand what needs to happen, and what success looks like, at this important meeting. Links for More Info: Lucía Ruiz bio: https://www.worldwildlife.org/experts/lucia-ruiz-bustos CBD COP16 explainer: https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/the-convention-on-biological-diversity-cop16-and-the-grand-plan-for-life-on-earth Chapters: 0:00 Preview 0:29 Intro 2:17 Lucía's background and personal story 6:54 History of the Convention on Biological Diversity 12:10 Importance of CBD COPs 13:59 Context for CBD COP16 17:20 What happened at CBD COP15 in 2022? 22:22 Explaining the 30x30 target 27:36 Role of PFPs 28:27 State of play heading into COP16 33:26 What does success look like? 36:11 Fun facts about Colombia 39:28 Outro
Today's episode covers patellofemoral joint pain and strategies that can be implemented to help relieve pain and improve your functional ability. Patellofemoral joint pain syndrome (PFPS) describes a very common condition in which a person experiences pain just behind the kneecap. Pain associated with this condition is usually reproduced with activities that put more stress on the joint, such as running, climbing stairs, squatting or prolonged sitting. Successful treatment of this condition revolves around temporary behavior modification, such as reducing running mileage and avoiding periods of prolonged sitting. Incorporating exercises that strengthen the hip (glutes) and knee (quads) muscles is also important. If you are experiencing pain at the front of the knee with some of the activities mentioned above, I have created a FREE PDF that will teach you some of the best exercises to implement. Visit my podcast page and subcribe to access this free resource. My book has a more comprehensive patellofemoral pain syndrome rehab program that guides you through three phases of rehab and has picture of me doing all of the exercises. Click HERE to learn more about my book.
For this episode I spoke to James Brennan (@jt_bren) who has been finishing up his Masters at the University of Colorado focused on crypto. As part of his research he took a dep dive into the infamous group behind the Miladys NFT collection, Remilia Corp. During the discussion we spoke about esoteric political ideologies professed by Remilia and those associated with it, their financialized tactics for earning revenue, and all of the controversies surrounding the project. We also asked ourselves the very uncomfortable question of whether their tactics are something the left could learn from.My previous episode with Adam from Acid Horizon where we talked about effective accelerationism is a good primer for this episode.If you liked the podcast be sure to give it a review on your preferred podcast platform. If you find content like this important consider donating to my Patreon starting at just $3 per month. It takes quite a lot of my time and resources so any amount helps. Follow me on Twitter (@TBSocialist) or Mastodon (@theblockchainsocialist@social.coop) and join the r/CryptoLeftists subreddit and Discord to join the discussion.Support the showICYMI I've written a book about, no surprise, blockchains through a left political framework! The title is Blockchain Radicals: How Capitalism Ruined Crypto and How to Fix It and is being published through Repeater Books, the publishing house started by Mark Fisher who's work influenced me a lot in my thinking. The book is officially published and you use this linktree to find where you can purchase the book based on your region / country.
On this episode of The Schoch Factor Podcast, we go into what college baseball we saw last weekend, with Stephen Schoch being at the Palmetto Series between Clemson and South Carolina and Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman being locked into the Astros Foundation College Classic.The guys then dive into the five teams that are still undefeated and who they think will remain undefeated the longest. Following that, we get into how Old Dominion tickled some Jiblets in the college baseball world before going over some of the top plays and moments from last weekend's college baseball action. All that and more coming up on the Schoch Factor Podcast!01:39 The Palmetto Series: Clemson vs South Carolina02:33 The Hotdog Stand Incident04:18 The Impact of Weather on the Rivalry06:05 Standout Players from Clemson and South Carolina10:54 The Houston Astros Foundation College Classic24:51 The Unbeaten Teams31:32 Highlighting Memorable Moments33:35 Player of the Week Selections36:40 Discussion on Pitcher Performance56:15 Reflection on Team Drafts57:34 Final Thoughts and Goodbyes The Schoch Factor is brought to you by Soldier Sports.Follow Stephen on Twitter: @BigDonkey47Follow Jake and Jordan on Twitter: @CespedesBBQFollow the podcast on Twitter: @SchochFactorPodSubscribe to The Schoch Factor on Apple | SpotifyThe Schoch Factor is also brought to you by Baseball BBQ. Get all officially licensed college baseball grilling tools and cutting boards at www.BaseballBBQ.com!
Physician Assistant and prior C&P examiner Leah Bucholz discusses How to Overcome Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome.Leah explains Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS) in her video "How to Overcome Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome | VA Disability". PFPS is a common anterior knee pain condition among U.S. Army veterans and active service members. Leah uses a knee model to describe the anatomy involved in PFPS, including the patellar tendon, patella, femur, tibia, fibula, and various ligaments. She mentions that PFPS is generally an overuse injury potentially linked to kneecap alignment issues, leading to conditions like chondromalacia and arthritis. The video also covers how veterans can get service connected for PFPS or related anterior knee pain through direct service connection (if injury or PFPS started during service) or secondary service connection (if PFPS is caused or worsened by another service-connected condition).
In today's episode, we simplify what Gary Henderson's team is building. We discuss Social Connector, Gary Club, Giraffe Towers NFTs, and Gary Coin, exploring their relationships and reasons to care... even if you're not a Gary fan. We'll delve into how all these pieces fit together and why it's not exclusively for Gary's fans.Previous "Gary episodes": 491 & 492My Gary Club profile: https://gary.club/tropicvibes12 Eth Essentials: 12 Ethereum Essentials Newsletter: https://NiftyBusinessweek.com/Twitter @TropicVibes: https://twitter.com/TropicVibesEmail: mail[at]niftybusiness.coNFT 101 Episodes:#36 - Web 3.0 Explained #225 - NFTs Explained#30 - 10 Reasons to Buy NFTs#7 - NFT Words & Verbiage#47 - NFT Words & Verbiage Part II#97 - NFT Words & Verbiage Part IIINeed a Ledger Hardware (Cold) Wallet?*Using this referral link supports this show at no extra cost to you:Ledger Affiliate Link Recommended Reading for Web3 Enthusiasts:The Bitcoin Standard: https://amzn.to/3K31jvLThe 10 Best-Ever Anxiety Management Techniques: https://amzn.to/3YphPL2*Amazon affiliate links
In this insightful episode of the Multifamily Collective, Mike Brewer delves into the nuanced world of incentives in multifamily organizations. Mike explores the dynamics of bonuses, including year-end and quarterly, along with merit increases and cost of living adjustments in salaries. Key Discussion Points: Performance Bonuses: Unraveling the effectiveness of frameworks like OKRs, PFPs, and other KPI-based models. KPIs: How they should be measured using analytical tools for precise results. Revenue and KPIs: An in-depth look at how revenue KPIs can be structured to reward under, on-par, and overachieving scenarios. Wage Increases: Discover how multifamily organizations can utilize KPI scores to determine appropriate wage increases, combining merit-based adjustments with cost-of-living considerations. Practical Examples: Mike provides relatable scenarios and examples to illustrate how these incentive models operate in real-world settings. Are there other incentive models in the multifamily space that have shown effectiveness and could be adopted or adapted? Share your experiences and thoughts! Stay tuned for more thought-provoking episodes from the Multifamily Collective, where we explore the latest trends and strategies in property management and multifamily leadership. Don't forget to like, share, and subscribe for more valuable insights. Leave your comments below to join the conversation! #mikebrewer MultifamilyCollective #PropertyManagement #IncentiveStrategies #Leadership #KPIs #PerformanceBonuses #WageIncrease #MultifamilyIndustry #RealEstateLeadership #MikeBrewer --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/mike-brewer/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/mike-brewer/support
The Lucky Trader Podcast: NFT Interviews, Exclusives, & Info
In this Thursday show, TylerD and the crew are joined by Astam Cloud to catch up on the NFT art market. The group chats XCOPY, recent mints and broader state of the market, and how the art market is stacking up with PFPs. Then in SocialFI, the group debates whether or not Friend Tech has product market fit in its current state.
FOMO HOUR #1 - Solana hits 2023 high. Tradfi chases meme coins. PFPs in a mini-rally. Flooring Protocol ‘bank-run'. Axie leads gamefi resurgence. FOMO HOUR brings you all the latest news, updates and headlines from around the world, inside and outside of the Crypto, Blockchain and NFT markets. Join hosts Farokh, Mando and OSF as they cover some of the biggest topics at present with some of the biggest names in the ecosystem. Streaming live 5 days per week, Monday to Friday 10:30AM EST to 11:30AM EST on YouTube and X!
Web3 Academy: Exploring Utility In NFTs, DAOs, Crypto & The Metaverse
In this video, Zeneca joins us for a conversation about the power of community in the world of web3 and we delve into the launch of Zen Academy's PFP collection.
Kevin (CEO, PROOF) is joined by Derek (Collab+Currency), Sam (PROOF Director of Research), and Amanda (PROOF Culture and Community) for an amazing show. Sam dives into an NFT market overview for the week before the crew discusses Pace's collaboration with Peter Saville on the CP1919 project, Blur Season 2 Ending, Refik Anadol enters MoMA's permanent collection, and Blackdot.tattoo: generative art tattoos. --------- EPISODE CHAPTERS --------- 0:00:00 Intro 0:00:05 - NFTs and Collaboration With Peter Saville 0:07:46 - NFT Market Update and Blur Season 2 0:18:13 - Community Proposal for Token Governance 0:25:39 - NFTs in Museums and Art Tattoos 0:36:18 - The Experience of NFTs in Art 0:49:54 - Creative Expression Without Approval 0:58:01 - Artistic Influences and Semiotics --------- EPISODE CHAPTERS WITH SHORT KEY POINTS --------- (0:00:05) - NFTs and Collaboration With Peter Saville On 100 Proof Live, we discuss NFTs, bear markets, Japanese streetwear, Moonbird, CP1919, Joy Division Unknown Pleasures. (0:07:46) - NFT Market Update and Blur Season We discuss NFTs, Moonbirds holders, PFPs, Artblocks, Ringers, Winds of Yalanawa, Opepen, Subscape, one-of-one sales, and Gabe Weis's 'The Blame Game'. (0:25:39) - NFTs in Museums and Art Tattoos NFTs, MoMA, generative art tattoos, tokenizing real world assets, Scott Campbell's Glory Hold discussed. (0:36:18) - The Experience of NFTs in Art NFTs authenticate digital art, generative art contributes to art history, and data maps create a virtual landscape. (0:49:54) - Creative Expression Without Approval Peter Saville created Joy Division's iconic Unknown Pleasures album cover without commercial objectives, inspiring global appreciation. (0:58:01) - Artistic Influences and Semiotics Peter Saville shares his journey into NFTs, reflecting on Warhol, Kraftwerk, symbols, semiotics, European canon, and art, music, fashion, photography, architecture, and film.
NFTs are much more than PFPs. In fact, they're the latest vehicle to allow brands to create better customer experiences per this episode's guest - Jonathan Blanco, Founder of Niftmint. Niftmint, as its website boasts, provides brands "APIs for product future-proofing by tokenizing physical and digital goods to boost loyalty, revenue, and authentication, while maintaining an easily consumable customer experience across all channels." What does this mean? Well, tune into the 94th episode of More Than Blockchain to learn more about how NFTs and blockchain technology can allow brands to create a heightened and improved customer experience. Please visit Niftmint's website to learn more - https://www.niftmint.com/ Jonathan's LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jgproduct/ Jonathan's X (Twitter) - https://twitter.com/jgproduct Jonathan's Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/jgblanco/ Please follow us on social media and check out our website :Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/morethanblockchain/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/morethanblckchn YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC45qe8qj0rIcXdYqI_aiIXg LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/more-than-blockchain Website - https://www.morethanblockchain.xyz/ Learn more about More Than Blockchain's Host - https://www.jarrettcarpenter.com/
00:00 Intro 00:28 Market Overview 04:08 Checks Holders Dropped PFPs 06:34 Nouns Near End of Fork Process 08:53 $11mn $APE Proposal to Buy Yuga NFTs 11:35 Notable Sales: Noun #8, 49 ETH; OCM Dimensions, 4 BTC / 65 ETH; Digital Dreamscape by MojokoWorld, 2.5 ETH _________ Subscribe to PROOF on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOaX0Vu-dWB7bNjFMnbBo2A?sub_confirmation=1 Follow us on other platforms: Proof Podcasts X | http://www.twitter.com/proofpodcasts Telegram | https://t.me/proofcountdown NFTstatistics X | http://www.twitter.com/punk9059 Proof X | http://www.twitter.com/proof_xyz NFTstatistics Presentation Deck https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/17onQeaWK3yTffrgDJYC3awgQZG9WER8w3u5lo4gKB6k/edit?usp=sharing
OPJ NFT Link: https://overpricedjpegs.cc/buy-opj-nft OPENSEA | DROPS Check out the latest drops in OpenSea: https://overpricedjpegs.cc/OpenSea WEB3SENSE | DEMO Find out more + get a demo today: https://overpricedjpegs.cc/web3sense
Epicenter - Learn about Blockchain, Ethereum, Bitcoin and Distributed Technologies
After a 2021 frothy bull market, NFTs are currently experiencing the depression phase of the market cycle. However, despite the fact that only NFT art has truly found its product-market fit, NFTs in general represented the consumerist moment for crypto. In addition, they also provided a solution for tokenising real world assets (RWA) and intangibles, potentially penetrating markets worth hundreds of trillions of dollars. Moreover, similar to digital art, the advent of AI poses a challenge when it comes to establishing provenance, but this represents another utility for NFTs, as they can be traced back to their origin, given the public nature of blockchains.We were joined by Stephen Young and Storm from NFTFi, to discuss the general state of the NFT market, future prospects for NFT development and how their P2P NFT lending platform unlocks new sources of liquidity in this bear market.Topics covered in this episode:Stephen's & Storm's backgrounds and what allured them to NFT financeNFT market overviewTokenised real world assets (RWA)NFTFi's peer-to-peer vs. peer-to-pool modelsHow other DeFi derivatives apply to the NFT marketNFT vs. fungible token market sizeBlur's BlendNFT royaltiesNFT lending protocols differencesHow escrow contracts affect NFT ownership and utilityNFTFi roadmapInterest rates for different collectionsNFT art marketAI artCollateralizing RWAEpisode links: Stephen Young on TwitterStorm on TwitterNFTFi on TwitterThis episode is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/508
Not really, or, at least, not me personally, but collectively in crypto art we so certainly are. We go gaga for anonymous influencers, hidden behind Punks and Apes and other PFPs. We spend outrageously to procure artworks by artists who have created, told, and expanded the stories of digital characters to whom they become inextricably linked. From where does that appeal come? 3D artist Nicole Ruggiero joins Max and Colborn to talk digital identities in all their forms, and all the reasons why we love them so.
In this captivating episode, our host Rocky Roark takes us on a profound exploration of the world of NFT PFPs (Non-Fungible Token Profile Pictures). He shares his personal journey of working on an NFT project and the pivotal reasons behind his decision to abandon it.The episode starts by explaining NFTs and PFPs, clarifying that the focus will be on PFP Artwork within the NFT space. NFTs are digital tokens granting exclusive ownership and royalties to artists. PFPs, on the other hand, are digital collectibles serving as profile pictures, wholly owned by the user. Notable PFP projects like Bored Apes and Doodles are mentioned.Rocky reflects on his introduction to NFTs and PFPs, giving credit to specific projects they learned about. They then share the journey of creating their own NFT project, "Mewton Island," describing its concept, characters, and the significant effort invested in its artwork.However, the episode takes a turn as Rocky opens up about his decision to quit the NFT project. The toxic nature of some PFP communities, the immense time commitment required, and the realization of money wasted on PFPs played significant roles in this choice.Despite his own project's fate, Rocky emphasizes their belief in the broader concept of NFTs. They highlight the various utilities of NFTs, such as proving ownership of digital assets, tokenized music and videos, domain names, event tickets, loyalty programs, patents, and gaming.In the concluding segment, Rocky urges caution with PFPs, advising those not involved to steer clear of them due to their questionable investment potential. For those already engaged, the advice is to exit before potential losses grow.The episode wraps up with a heartfelt shoutout to a listener who left a positive review on Apple Podcasts and sincere appreciation for the audience's support. Viewers and listeners are reminded to engage with the podcast by subscribing, leaving reviews, and staying connected for more insightful discussions on various topics.
Our guest this week is Alex.BSL, the co-CEO at Blocksmith Labs, the company behind the Smyths NFT collection.Alex.BSL joins Brian Friel to discuss the origin story of Blocksmith Labs and how they started with the goal of creating NFT collections that provide real value, not just hype. He talks about their different products, including Mercury, a pre-mint tool, and Atlas, a hub for NFT activity. Alex also mentions their focus on solving problems and how they build products based on metas.Brian and Alex dive into Smyths, Blocksmith Labs' classic early PFP collection, and its ascension to a premium collection. They talk about the launch of Megos, a new collection that will target a different demographic, with a focus on casual mobile gaming. Alex highlights the importance of building IP and how it takes more than dropping an NFT collection to create a brand. Show Notes: 0:49 - Who is Alex.BSL / Starting on Solana? 2:04 - Transitioning to Web34:55 - The initial goal for Blocksmith Labs 7:15 - Who is Blocksmith Labs working with / Some of the early products 9:32 - Process for building / what the market needs 11:58 - Origin story of Smiths13:12 - Evolution of Smyths in the future 17:05 - The Meegos collection 21:02 - How to unblock crypto to make a mainstream splash in gaming 23:57 - When is Migos coming 25:20 - Where can people find out more about MeeJump/Meegos?26:21 - A builder he admires in the Solana ecosystem Full Transcript:Brian Friel (00:06):Hey, everyone, and welcome to The Zeitgeist, the show where we highlight the founders, developers, and designers who are pushing the Web 3.0 space forward. I'm Brian Friel, Developer Relations at Phantom, and I'm super excited to introduce our guest, Alex.BSL, the co-CEO at Blocksmith Labs, the company behind the Smyths NFT collection. Alex, welcome to the show. Alex.BSL (00:28):Hey, glad to be here. Brian Friel (00:29):Really excited to talk with you today. I've seen you over the years, my time on Solana, all across the crypto Twitter sphere. You guys have built a lot in the last couple of years that I want to get into. But maybe before we start talking about Blocksmith Labs and everything you're up to, I'd love to learn a little bit about you. Who is Alex.BSL and how did you get started in Solana? Alex.BSL (00:49):I think a lot of people know this, but my Web 2.0 career has been 10 years of shipping products for top tech companies. Over the last 10 years, I've worked with Apple, Cisco, Coinbase. Coinbase was my last Web 2.0 job. And then my first Web 3.0 job was DeGods. I started there as a mod just out of accident, and then lead dev. And then I started my own thing, Blocksmith Labs, because I wanted to do different things with Blocksmith Labs. It didn't really align with the incentives and what they wanted to do with DeGods. Yeah, that's the light version of it. We can go deeper. Brian Friel (01:28):Yeah. When you said you were working with all these Web 2.0 companies, was that in a technical capacity? You mentioned you were lead dev for DeGods at one point, but you also have experience running projects as well from an operational standpoint. Alex.BSL (01:40):I was a full stack engineer for the last 10 years. I led teams. I also did dev work over the last 10 years at different levels and capacities, but I've been mostly a dev for a decade. Brian Friel (01:55):Love it. What was the moment then when you're working in these Web 2.0 capacities, working with great companies, that made you decide, "Hey, Web 3.0 is something I need to jump into"? Alex.BSL (02:05):Web 3.0 just started out of curiosity. Because when you're a Web 2.0 dev and if you're a dev that's working with big companies, you got to stay on the cutting edge of the technology. Otherwise, someone with one year, two years of experience will come over and take your position. So you got to always be on the cutting edge. That's why I think around 2020, the huge high brand blockchain and crypto, it was all around. Just out of curiosity, I started learning about Eth and Bitcoin. I researched every single token and coin under 100 market cap. That's how I started this. It was just educational for me in the beginning. I started on Eth, started learning Solidity, and then I built some tabs. It was fun. It was fine. I ended up in Solana just by pure accident. Like I said, I was learning about every single thing every single day. (02:58):And then one day on Decrypt, I saw this article about Degen Apes mint and how it's going to be a huge thing and how it's going to break Solana. Just out of curiosity, I ended up and then I minted. But in Solana, once you click mint, it hits you different. You can't go back. Because when I was on Eth, I was minting stuff, I was doing shit, but it felt so backward to me. I'm going to be a 100% honest with you on this. Because imagine the next billion people, you're asking for them to pay $10, $20. Imagine you, going and buying a salad and there's a tax of 10 more dollars. It felt so backward to me. I understood what B2C meant and why it's the way it is, but it didn't make sense to me. But I was still going on with it. (03:40):But once I hit mint on Solana, it just hit me. "Oh, this is the closest thing people are used to in terms of experience." I haven't looked back since then. I've been in Solana. I've just done everything to add value to the ecosystem, and the ecosystem has given me so much back. Brian Friel (03:56):Yeah, I think that story resonates with a lot of people, the Degen Ape mint being that flagship moment where everyone realized, why do we need to settle for subpar user experiences? The mint itself was, I remember, chaotic, which is true Degen Ape form, which is great, but the network was held enough. Great. Alex.BSL (04:14):Yeah, I was up until 6:00 AM to mint, and it was chaotic. There was no Candy Machine by then. I remember that. Yeah. Candy Machine was born out of necessity from that mint. Yeah, I remember that in those days. Brian Friel (04:27):Yeah, we've come a long way. It can be easy to forget how much has been built. Alex.BSL (04:32):Now, you can just mint and it'll drop 150K NFTs out of nowhere with $100. Brian Friel (04:37):Yeah, and it's only going to get crazier, I imagine. Let's go back to that time. You've already researched crypto. You just made the Degen Ape mint. You have all this wealth of experience. You mentioned that you briefly worked with DeGods, but when you were ready to start Blocksmith Labs, what was it that you were pursuing? What was it that you set out to do with Blocksmith Labs? Alex.BSL (04:55):I always see new technologies and new industries. What problem are they solving? What is this adding to the society that people would need? That's how I see things. By then, I've not seen any NFT collection doing anything more than minting more collections, airdropping hype there was about NFTs. I wanted Blocksmith Labs to be a blueprint for the next generation of NFTs, or at least a new category of NFTs that can actually provide real value. It's not just hype. It's not just, "Oh, this is going to go to the moon." We have seen that a lot. Because 99% of those projects that are just solely based on hype, they mint and then they drop. I don't know if you remember, there was a time in Solana where there were 10 projects minting at the same day. It was like, you hit something. Oh, it hits? It's fine. You're ragged? You move on. (05:47):The reason none of them last is that first thing, the NFT business model, I think it's not set up in a way to last long. Some projects realize this over time, like Pudgy Penguins. Now, they're trying to sell physical products so that they can use the brand, use the IP, sell products, make revenue and last longer as a company. But I realized this back two years ago, and that is why BSL started in a different way. Oh, we are going to create products, have users, create value, and then we are going to drive them back to Smyths, our first NFT collection. I don't want to take too much credit for this, but since then, you have seen this new kind of NFT projects who are actually building products, who are using this as a seed round to build their own products, services, and bring value back. (06:39):It's not really just about hype or just about pumping bags. It's also about contributing to the ecosystem, building relationships, helping other NFT projects. I'd like to think we have been successful in that, and now, you have been seeing that a lot of projects mention us as their favorite builders. Maybe we are successful in doing that. Brian Friel (06:57):Let's dive into that. You mentioned that you guys have taken a real builder-first mentality. I think you guys describe yourself as a Web 3.0 or crypto B2B SaaS company. What is the other businesses in this B2B relationship? Who are you guys working with, and what are some of these early products that you guys have started to build for them? Alex.BSL (07:15):Our first product was Mercury. We have onboarded over 1100 projects on Mercury. I think it was the defining moment on Solana where projects, you realized, you could do actual things, create products, create services, being the hype cycle, being the attention cycle. Because now, you see projects doing a lot of other things to stay in the hype cycle, to stay in the attention. Back then, Mercury was all we needed because every time a hype project was on Mercury, we also monetized it in a clever way. We didn't take money from those projects. We took percentage of white list spots and auctioned them, and raffled them in our own token called Forge. That helped add a lot of value to Forge, which, in turn, added value to our NFT, Smyths. (08:02):Before Mercury was a thing, the way you submitted wallets was literally manual. You had to either give your wallet, or you had to give your Discord accounts and then give wallets. We automated all of that. No, we cannot take it for granted. Now, there is Atlas, a lot of other tools. But then, it was a huge thing. We solved a problem. Like I said early on, that's my core belief, that you have to solve a problem. That is why even in Atlas, we have something called a white list marketplace. That only came up because people were selling white lists as spots, but they were selling on shady Discord accounts. You had to give up your wallet, and then there was a middleman. You had to put collateral, all kinds of shit. (08:44):But that is why we know there is a problem and we solved it. And then it was a huge success. That is how I see our products adding value to the ecosystem and us getting back value. Brian Friel (08:54):You mentioned two products there I just want to hit on. Mercury, which is a white list management tool- Alex.BSL (08:59):We have a ton more. Brian Friel (09:00):Right. ... Atlas, which is this hub for NFT activity. You guys have built a ton more. You guys, list them off here. I know Bifrost, which is a price discovery launchpad. You guys have Raven and Shift. You guys have basically built out this entire suite of tools and infrastructure for other NFT projects to leverage and build their own brands and communities based on them. (09:23):I guess, zooming out on everything that you guys have built, how do you decide what is your process there? Who do you talk to first, and how do you realize that this is what the market needs? Alex.BSL (09:33):That's a good question. You know what? We are only a four-member full-time team for the past one-and-a-half years, and with the extended team, it's around 20, 21, the full team. But since the inception, there are only four full-time members in Blocksmith Labs. It's crazy how much we've been able to achieve with just four full-time members. It makes it even harder to make a decision, and that is why you don't see Bifrost running now. You don't see Shift running now. Raven is still there. It's self-service. It goes on by itself there, but we haven't made really significant changes to Raven. We are completely focusing on Atlas now. (10:09):The way I see it is, the space moves so fast and people need stuff based on a meta. There was a meta of needing a good, premium launchpad when Bifrost was a thing. It was a natural extension in the NFT lifecycle. We had Mercury, which is a pre-mint tool, and then we built a mint tool, which is a launchpad. And then we built post-mint tools, which is Raven and Shift. That was the thinking behind. "Oh, we are going to build everything around NFT lifecycle. Oh, there's going to be pre-mint tools, mint tools, post-mint tools." That was the thinking. But over time, we realized that we have our shit in way too many products. We need to focus on a single product and go deep, instead of going wide. That is why we turned off a lot of products. (10:58):Now, we are solely focusing on Atlas, if there's anything that we want to add. We are planning to integrate Raven even into Atlas, so that's our mentality now. Yeah. Before then, it was just building products and seeing what works, and I believe that's also helped us keeping the attention for a long time. Because if we didn't build all those products, we wouldn't have the same reputation that we have today. We wouldn't be in people's minds today. I think that helped us. They were cool experiments, but we've found our footing now, and we are happy with focusing on Atlas completely now. Brian Friel (11:35):That's great to hear. You mentioned some of the other things that you guys offer as well. You mentioned the Forge token, which we can talk about some of the synergies there with what you're building. But you guys also have a couple NFT collections to talk about. First off being Smyths. Smyths, I would say, is what most people think of when they think of Blocksmith Labs. Can you walk us through some of the origin story of how Smyths came to be? Alex.BSL (11:58):It was me and Harmy. Harmy and I were in DeGods. He was also doing some dev work for DeGods. And then we were both just discussing tech stuff and we realized that we have had the same thought process about how NFT should be like and what the future of NFT should be like. That's the only reason we started this. (12:20):Since we're also good with the execution speed, a lot of this stuff that you see, probably from idea to execution, none of it would've taken more than three months. I think there was something, that they built something for the TIROCULAR donations. From idea to execution, it was just three hours. (12:38):Since we're able to execute things fast, we have the capability, even with a smaller team, to make decisions on the fly. Not just think about something now and wait for six months and the meta is gone and no one cares about it anymore. It's not like that. Brian Friel (12:54):You had mentioned a lot about metas there. Smyths being one of those classic early PFP collections and have since gone through an as ascension, so to speak, I think you guys went from OG Smyths to ascended Smyths, talk a little bit about that process. Is that something that might continue to evolve in the future? Alex.BSL (13:12):Yeah, 100%. The next thing coming up after Megos Mint, which is our second collection, is Fund of Youth for Smyths. That's going to fix more problems, I think, that Smyths has now, which is to do with rarity, top ranks not being top-rank-looking. A lot of stuff like that will be fixed. We are in a very specific niche. It's strong, muscular Norse men. We want the art to be more accessible, more relatable for a lot more people, so we'll be doing something around that as well. Brian Friel (13:47):Oh, yeah. If you haven't seen these, these are strong Norse men that are true builders. They're all holding hammers and wrenches. Alex.BSL (13:55):Yeah. Hammers and weapons and all kinds of shit. Actually, to your question, we needed that ascension upgrade to be honest. It just came out of necessary. Because when we minted, Harmy and I, my co-founder, we were both devs. We didn't really care about art a lot. To be honest, we left all the art decisions to the artists, and obviously, he didn't care about the collection as much as us. So he did his best. But then, I think in a month, we realized that, oh, this needs to change. If you're really serious about making a PFP collection, we should go all in. This half-arsing two things is not working. We've got to full-arse this thing. That is why we had to do it. (14:37):Actually, there was a point where we wanted to do cards with three different kinds of rarities. I'm glad we didn't do that. I'm glad I made the decision to stick with PFP. It was born out of necessity and I'm glad we did that. It helped a lot of people, and it also helped us distinguish between different Smyths. Because the early versions were a lot more zoomed out, you couldn't figure them out. Small Twitter, PFP circle. Now, it's all about optimizing that small, little thing that you see on Twitter. Also, with Megos, we are always testing. How is it looking on Twitter in this small size? How is it looking on a huge screen on the Mac size when you print it and stuff like that? Brian Friel (15:20):Yeah, it's interesting to think about. If you're running this community or a collection like this, the end goal is you want people representing this picture as their identity on the internet. Alex.BSL (15:30):It has to be optimized, yeah. Brian Friel (15:32):Yeah, how you come to something that serves a large number of people. There's thousands of people who own these PFPs. I don't even know if there are thousands of strong Norse men on the internet wielding hammers and wrenches, but I think it symbolizes something that people want, that builder mentality. Alex.BSL (15:50):Yeah. It also attracted a different kind of user base and that is why out of necessity, we have a second collection. The way we ran Smyths, the way we ran Blocksmith Labs, attracted a demographic of older gentlemen who know how sustainable businesses are run, but they don't have the time to go on Twitter, be active on Twitter. They just want to buy this and just go on and do their own thing, run their own business. (16:17):There are a lot of business owners within Smyths who don't really have time for crypto as much, but they bought Smyths because the way we ran things, they understood, "Oh, this is the only legit project that can sustain for a long time, because they have a different business model than all the other NFT collections." It has its pros and cons, and that is why we have a second collection called Megos, which is going to target a different demographic; people who are into gaming, content creation, who are more active on Twitter. Yeah, that is why Megos will exist. Brian Friel (16:49):Let's dive into that. Let's talk more about Megos. You mentioned some of the inspiration there, that you want to appeal to a broader audience, potentially a younger crowd. There's also a game involved with Megos as I understand. Can you talk a little bit about everything that you guys have planned for that collection? Alex.BSL (17:05):I think there's a niche no one's really focusing, in the NFT space at least, that is casual mobile gaming. It's a huge industry. It's bigger than traditional PC gaming or PS5, Xbox gaming. I tweeted this art earlier today. Candy Crush alone makes more than a billion dollars per year, and it's growing at 15%. PUBG Mobile is making more than a billion dollars. And some games you have not heard of, Clash of Titans is making 500 million. There are so many casual games that makes millions and millions of users. We've also seen the growth of IP from a simple mobile game to a movie with Angry Birds. (17:49):It was a super simple mobile game, but it was so successful and they were making so much money, they made so many of those games. They had merchandise, events, products, a movie. I don't even know what other shit they have, but it's a true testament to the fact that if you want to build IP, you really need some product or some service. I think a lot of people in the NFT ecosystem don't really understand when they say, "I want to build an IP." It's not just, "Oh, I'm going to drop this NFT collection and people are going to start caring about me." (18:21):It's never like that because it took years and years for, let's say, Harry Potter, for people who care about the IP or the characters. It takes some sort of a movie, a game, some sort of product or a service, or anything like that. That is why we are now focused on the gaming and content creation with Megos. Because gaming is not just a single thing anymore, it's an experience. People stream a lot. People make content around games a lot now, and I consume a lot of that content. I've been watching GTA role-play videos a lot, and they have millions and millions of views. I bet there are more people watching than there are people playing these games. I think they go hand-in-hand, and these niche, no one's really targeting it. (19:10):I like what Pudgy is doing. I'm going to bring that back up. They're selling those toys. If they're successful in selling those toys to 100,000 people, a million people, a lot more people are going to know Pudgies. And then the brand and the IP, over years, is going to be valuable. We are targeting this demographic and these gamers and content creators. MeJump is only the first thing, and we are going to have something called MeArcade, different kinds of games and fun game theories involving different types of cutting edge technology. Maybe a year from now, you're going to have a game on Apple Vision Pro because we can do that. We have proven that over time that we can take cutting edge technology and make something out of it. (19:55):With MeJump, compress NFTs. We have worked on it. There is no end. In fact, there is no tooling, but we made it work. And now, MeJump is live. The MeCartridges are going to users, they're playing them, they're burning them. It's a fun game mechanic. In the first 24 hours, 3,000 of them were burned, so it's clearly working. That'll be what Megos is about. Brian Friel (20:16):Oh, you're going deep on it. I love it because it's an exciting new product that you guys are coming up with. It makes me wonder too, and I want to ask you this, is I'm someone who grew up in this age where, and I think a lot of the younger generation just natively understands, there is a massive market for not only just playing video games, but like you said, watching and consuming content related to video games. Twitch is massive, YouTube Gaming is massive, and it really only feels like this is going to accelerate. (20:41):It feels like there's this really natural complimentary pairing with what's happening in crypto and in gaming when you consider, at the end of the day, digital items. There's communities that are being built online, people want to own their assets. I'm curious to hear your perspective. Is there anything that's currently blocking, or would be an unlock for crypto to make a mainstream splash into gaming? Alex.BSL (21:02):Oh, into gaming? I truly believe that the missing part are the wallets. Because when you go on to a website in the Web 2.0, you're annoyed if there is no Google sign in or Twitter sign in, or Apple sign in. Oh, I got to put in my email and then have to create a password? It's annoying. Even if you just add two more clicks, it's annoying to the user. Imagine pushing them to create a wallet, understand on-ramp money, transfer it to their wallets and remember their mnemonic phrase, save it somewhere. This is all, I think, a huge blocker when you want to onboard millions and millions of users. I truly think the wallets have the power to make crypto mainstream. Because imagine, a wallet could replace everything from sign in to checkout. (21:55):You could be signing in with your Phantom wallet and then you could check out with your Phantom wallet, and everything is seamless. You don't even have to go through all that process of Stripe, and then you're going to have to create a card, debit card. You know how it is. Yeah. To be honest, I think wallets have that capability and in the future, I think there will be versions of these wallets that will do this. I think I saw this. I don't remember the wallet. I think I just saw this today, that they have an option on mobile, sign in with wallet. And when you do that, it creates a wallet for you and then you can download. Something like that. (22:33):So I think removing those steps for the next 500 million users who are used to one-click checkouts. You know how Amazon is? It's just one click, done. It gets to your home. Why do we have so many steps in Web 3.0 and on wallets? Brian Friel (22:49):No, it's a huge thing We think about too, making these things intuitive. I think there's a lot of layers to all of this. There's the game developers that we need to work with. There's operating systems, app stores, all of that. Alex.BSL (23:02):Yeah. To be honest, I believe Phantom has done the best job. I believe a huge part of Solana's success is Phantom. I think everyone's first experience on Solana, at least around Degen Apes mint, was Phantom wallet. And then anyone that's coming from MetaMask, this is fucking 10X upgrade. And then that was really the thing that hooked me into Solana, and you guys have done a great job. Brian Friel (23:30):Wow. Very kind. Yeah, thank you so much. Appreciate it. That was my experience, too. I was just a user of Phantom at the time with the Degen Ape mint. Wasn't working for the team, but- Alex.BSL (23:38):Crazy. Brian Friel (23:38):Yeah. No, I definitely resonate with that. Well, Alex, I guess turning back real quick just to Megos, we talked about a lot there with gaming and what you guys have upcoming. But what can you tell people about when Megos is coming, what they can expect when MeJump is launching? Is there anything you can share, or what people should be thinking about in the next couple months? Alex.BSL (23:58):Oh, MeJump is live right now. You can go on and play. Brian Friel (24:00):Oh, I love it. Alex.BSL (24:01):We went live yesterday. That's what I was saying. We have 150K compressed NFTs. It dropped to a lot of communities in the ecosystem and the first 24 hours, I think just half an hour ago, it was 24 hours, they burned around 3000 compressed NFTs out of 150K. It's a fun game mechanic usually because I'll tell you how we use compressed NFTs. There's something called MeCartridge. The supply is 150K and then we drop them, and it's used as an in-game item. You're going for a run in the game, so it's an endless jumper. If you die somewhere, to continue the game, you have to burn the NFT. That's how it works. We have up to five per run. (24:45):Usually, I think in the Web 2.0 world, you see buy some sort of credits in that place. In Candy Crush when you couldn't do it, you click on something. Buy using real money, and then you continue the game. We have seen this model work in a lot of Web 2.0 games. We have adopted that same model and we're using Web 3.0 compressed NFTs with this. It's been fun. The people are having a lot of fun. It's addictive. People are raging and also having fun at the same time. Yeah, it's a good sign. Brian Friel (25:14):Oh, that's great to hear. Well, where can people then go, I'd say, to learn more about Megos in particular, or MeJump? Alex.BSL (25:20):Oh, everything we have is on Megos NFT Twitter. All the information is right there. You can go, or you can come to Megos' Discord, discord.gg/megos, and then you can ask any questions. We have a team all the time answering all kinds of questions. (25:36):Yeah. We have one more thing after MeJump. MeJump is going to run for four weeks, and we are distributing 1000 white list spots through MeJump. We distributed 3,000 through MeBoard, which was our first experience. Yeah, third is going to be MeList. It's not what you think it is. It's going to come later, and we are going to mint a claim after the MeList ends. Brian Friel (26:04):Awesome. We've got a lot of stuff coming down the pipe here to be excited about. Well, Alex, this has been an awesome discussion. I got to ask this question because Blocksmith Labs has a reputation for being builders. We would love to know, who is a builder that you admire in the Solana ecosystem? Alex.BSL (26:22):That's a tough question. I like Famous Foxes. I think we both are at the same level, but we sit in our own space and don't really bother each other. Yeah, I like them. Brian Friel (26:35):Okay. Awesome. Alex.BSL (26:35):Maybe you've had that answer as well. Brian Friel (26:37):Yeah, we've had Drax TS on the show as well. I think he actually might have been the one that shouted you guys out as well, so there's a mutual respect there for the NFT builders. Alex.BSL (26:45):Yeah, 100% we do. Yeah. Brian Friel (26:46):Well, maybe we'll have to do a follow-up episode, get you and Drax on, and see what you guys are all up to in a year from now. You guys have been putting out a lot, and I know the Solana ecosystem is very thankful to have you guys involved. Alex.BSL (26:58):I appreciate it. Thank you. Brian Friel (26:59):Alex.BSL, the co-CEO of Blocksmith Labs. Thanks so much for coming on The Zeitgeist. Alex.BSL (27:03):Thanks for having me, Brian.
Our guests this week are Vibhu Norby and Degen Poet. Vibhu is the founder of DRiP, a platform that allows users to receive free NFT collectibles, commissioned from artists and projects across the landscape of crypto. The project has grown exponentially since its inception, with over 300,000 wallets receiving at least one NFT a week. Degen Poet, a prolific artist on Solana, has been a key collaborator on the project. Vibhu and Degen Poet discuss how DRiP is changing the game for NFTs and why the first experience people have with blockchain should be through art. Plus, they share their unique processes for creating and distributing NFTs, and why they choose to plant their flag in Solana. Show Notes:0:56 - Latest News3:05 - What is Drip? 5:22 - Origin story of Degen Poet, starting working in Solana and Vibh10:13 - Workflow with NFTs12:54 - Working with other artists16:01 - How Drip helps Degen Poet's work17:51 - Only on Solana21:42 - How is drip breaking phantom?22:50 - Future looking like Instagram26:53 - Platforms like Drip vs. traditional mediums30:40 - Things to change /have changed in the industry 33:52 - A builder they admire in the Solana ecosystem? Full Transcript:Brian Friel (00:00):Hey, everyone and welcome to the Zeitgeist, the show where we highlight the founders, developers, and designers who are pushing the Web 3.0 Space forward. I'm Brian Friel, developer relations at Phantom. And I'm super excited to reintroduce our first repeat guest, Vibhu Norby, as well as Solana's very own Degen poet, Vibhu and DP, welcome to the show. Vibhu Norby (00:27):What's up? Thanks for having me back. Degen Poet (00:30):Hey, thanks so much for having us. Brian Friel (00:32):Vibhu, I mentioned this before recording, but you're a friend of the pod. You're the first official repeat guest of the Zeitgeist, and the last time we had you on was October of last year and you were working on Solana Spaces, which was a really big and audacious project I'd say, and a lot has happened since then and you're still working on big and audacious projects on Solana. Can you walk us through what has changed in the last couple months and what are you working on today? Vibhu Norby (00:56):Good times, good memories. Yeah. What happened in between October and now? What changed? Funnily enough, Drip actually started that same month. We actually started sending NFTs to people starting with Vincenzo in late October. I think we did two drop before Breakpoint. Yeah, things were going fine and then our world got flipped upside down once again by those who must not be named. For a couple months there, I think we were trying to figure out how we were going to continue to operate the stores. Obviously Phantom was a major benefactor of spaces along with Solana Foundation, but they who must not be named were also major sponsors and it was kind of the three pillars of our business and one of them got pulled out. And simultaneously with all of that, Drip was blowing up and changing everything for us internally. Coming into January, every single week we were stacking at 15, 20% week-over-week growth on the list organically. (01:51):And between December 1st and the shutdown of Spaces, our Twitter following more than doubled and all of the new growth were people coming to us for stuff related to Drip. And so I was spending my time going between doing customer service for Drip, talking to artists, and then the store was starting to feel like it was losing its voice a bit kind of naturally in that. Yeah. I mean as much as we loved it for a bunch of different reasons, it just made sense for us to take this traumatic pivot from physical retail stores to free NFTs. I think it was a really good decision. I think one of my best decisions so far in life because since we closed down Spaces, Drip has grown five, six x since then. We've really greatly expanded the product and kind of the vision for it and I think we're making a big impact on Solana and crypto in general. Brian Friel (02:45):You mentioned that this was born out of Solana Spaces originally, it was almost just this separate side thing you were doing and became this absolute beast that had to be unleashed. For those who aren't familiar with what Drip is, can you describe what Drip is, how it operates today, and then maybe talk a little bit about the scale that you guys are currently operating at? Vibhu Norby (03:05):Yeah, sure. Really simple value prop. You sign in with Phantom, you get an invite code and you start getting free collectibles. You can kind of engage with the product as much or as little as you want. By default, you get a free collectible from us every Wednesday and those collectibles are NFTs and they're real on chain Solana NFTs and we commission those pieces from artists and projects, not just now within Solana but across the landscape of crypto. And we pay for the airdrop costs and it's totally free. It's one of the few things in all of our industry that starts at free, ends at free. You don't need any tokens in your wallet, you don't have to go through KYC with an exchange. More recently, a couple months ago in March, we started adding these additional lists that you could subscribe to. Degen Poet was number one, but since then we've added another seven creators and we launched two new streams every Friday. (03:57):Those work the same way. You sign up for an individual creator that you love, can be an artist, could be a brand, could be NFT project, a video creator, influencer. They send you free collectibles on some regular basis and you can collect them, you can trade them, you can hold them, you can brag to your friends about what you got. In terms of growth, we've continued to grow 10, 15% a week even at a very big size now. There's two kind of stats that kind of matter. One is we consider non-fraudulent wallets as many people tried to farm Drip in the past. That number in real time right now is 300,000 and we're sending out at least 300,000 NFTs a week on showcase right now. But in total, every single week across all of our creators now, we're sending well over a million collectibles every single week. This is unbelievable groundbreaking stuff. It's not happening anywhere else in our industry, but people fall in love with Drip every single day. It's been awesome. Brian Friel (04:49):Yeah. I've been a day one subscriber of Drip. I love it. It's such a delightful thing to have all this new art coming in your inbox every day. You kind of hinted at this only possible at Solana, which I want to dive into too. But you did mention there, Degen Poet, and I'd be remiss if we didn't introduce Degen Poet now to the show. I think if you're a listener and you've been around the Solana space, especially on Twitter, you've seen Degen Poet, I'd say one of the most prolific artists on Solana for some time now. Degen Poet, for those who don't know, can you introduce who you are, how you got started on Solana, and then how you also started working with Vibhu? Degen Poet (05:22):I guess I'm Degen Poet. I live in Chicago with my wife and a couple dogs. I got started in Solana in the summer of 2021. I was just basically doing trading and stuff in Bitcoin and then trading all the other coins. I did some leverage trading on CuCoin and then found Solana through the whole Sam Coins DeFi on Solana first. I think Radium was my first stop. That's kind of my first experience with it all. I thought NFTs were garbage and a silly idea and all those things. I had probably been out of poetry for, I don't know, seven or eight years at that point. I did all of my college education and got an MFA in poetry and then just decided that it wasn't a great career path as far as the money you could make and what you had to do to support yourself as a poet is pretty difficult in the real world. (06:16):I gave that up and just kind of did business for a living, did computers, Excel, stuff like that. That's how I kind of made a living and then found Solana through all this. I started buying some stuff on Digitalize. I bought a Solana Monkey, a viking I think pretty early on and papered it way too early. But I think it was at that point where I decided maybe I should try poems as NFTs just because nobody else was doing it. I figured it'd at least be a unique way to try. The first thing I got started on was gmu poems, which was basically an NFT, which was a list of words. And at the time they were going really hot because they were based on this Eth derivative of something called Loot, I think. But I was mad at it because I was like, how is it worth so much money and doing so great? And it's literally just a random list of words, but instead of being mad at it, I decided to kind of embrace it and then just filled in the spaces between the words with poems. (07:11):And I did 200 of those in a month and that's how I got my start on Solana. And then just was making NFTs nonstop ever since, mainly through Exchange Art, doing one of one art. And then over the last year or so since Editions opened up, did additions on exchange art, and then that all just kind of led me to Vibhu and Drip. I really like serving a large audience with art. I mean that was always really fun with Editions. And then with Additions, I wanted to deliver them at a low cost, but that just invites bots to basically come in and flip your stuff. Bots were making way more money than I was off my art just because of the setup, you know what I mean? That's, I think, what intrigued me about Drip is I could achieve this thing that I wanted, which was giving art to all these people on Solana for free basically. And then there's no real bots, everyone's trying to sign up as an individual and gets it airdropped. It's not like a mint. Yeah, I think that's kind of where it all started and how it all made sense for the way that I was distributing my art. Brian Friel (08:12):Yeah, you hit on a lot there. I think that journey of trying out Solana for the first time, this new primordial soup of ecosystem projects and then this totally irrational NFT market, everyone gets dive into it. I think a lot of people can resonate that picture. Vibhu Norby (08:26):Right. I got to interject here because Degen Poet just introduced himself for five minutes and not one time did he mention the word typewriter, which is what he's most famous for of all things is that he didn't say the word typewriter. Brian Friel (08:42):Yeah. Vibhu Norby (08:43):But how did you find a typewriter? Just tell us that quickly. Degen Poet (08:47):Let's see here. I was cleaning out my sister's ex-husband's parents' basement and we found a typewriter when I was in college, and I think I just got really into them at that point because I was doing poetry and stuff and just would smoke tobacco pipes and type on a typewriter pretending I was some guy. I think that's where it all started. And then it picked back up again around Solana or whatever. My wife bought me a typewriter as an anniversary present. That was the first one that I really beat the crap out of for Solana. That's, I guess, what started it. From poems to trying to make something visually more appealing is really what it all clicked with. With NFTs specifically, I started out with just Photoshop and text and I needed some way of making it visually more appealing because that's how you get sales. But that basically took me from a poet to someone who makes art with a typewriter was kind of because people really pretty pictures on NFTs and turns out I like making them. There you go. Brian Friel (09:51):I think Vibhu brings up a great point there. I mean, Degen Poet I think is prolific and well known for having this unique process with a typewriter. If you could expand a little bit on that, Degen Poet, how do you go about creating these collections and is there anything that you do with Drip in particular that is different from either your normal flow or other flows that you know of of NFT artists on Solana? Degen Poet (10:13):Yeah. I mean I guess one of my main things that I've sort of been consistent with are the profile pictures. As a legendary, I'll take an existing Solana profile picture and just kind of do a typewriter version of those. For that process, I basically sketch a version of the profile picture with a pen, and then those were sort of my guides for the typewriter. I've done it freehand on the typewriter before, but you're only exposing a small portion of the paper at a time and it's really hard to get the proportions right. It's helpful to kind of map them out with a pen or marker sketch first. And then I do go through with a detailed typewriter version of it. I try to pull in words or traits or something to do with the NFT as part of the words that make up the image just as a piece of interest if you zoomed in. (11:03):And then I'll print out another copy of that. I'll do another sketch or sometimes I'll just paint on the typewriter piece itself and I'll use oil pastels or watercolor. At the end of the day I'm layering two scans. One of them is basically just the typewriter ink and then another one is this sort of painted version and I layered them on top of each other so you get a colored version of a typewriter piece, and that's kind of how all the profile pictures start. I think that's definitely pretty unique, just using all the physical pieces and really trying to make it all from physical scans versus any sort of digital pieces. And then anything digital is really for animation. Sometimes I'll type out every single frame and I'll make individual frames physically for everything that I'm animating. Other times I'll just cut out a piece of the eye or a piece of a lip or something like that on Photoshop and move it around, save a few different images or change colors or something. I do some Photoshopping to get the pieces animated, which I think just kind of adds another level to it. Typewriter is such an old physical looking thing. And so it's interesting, I think, to see it in an animation style. That's something I've really leveled up with Drip. I feel like I've done way more animations with Drip than any of my art sort of previously. Brian Friel (12:22):You hit a lot there throughout the intro and throughout describing your process, but basically this journey, I think a lot of people resonate with coming to Solana, seeing this fragmented NFT landscape ripe with speculation. That doesn't always make sense, but I think Drip's unique in that it's changing all these models, it's flipping them on their head. Vibhu, can you speak a little bit to who you're working with? Who are these artists that are now reaching out to you? I think you've proven this model with the Degen Poet, but when you talk to artists on Solana, what's attractive to Drip for them? Vibhu Norby (12:54):Yeah. I want to touch on something that you reminded me of, which is that the transition from Spaces to Drip, although on the surface is very jarring, the thing that kind of ties them together was that when we were meeting people in real life trying to introduce them to blockchains, what we found time and time again was that it was the art and the PFPs that were resonating with people in the store. It wasn't all the other stuff. And yet the way that most people have gotten into here is through an exchange where it's all about trading. And so I put this on Twitter many times, but things would be different today and they will be different in the future if the first experience that people have of this amazing technology is art, right? It's la piece from Degen Poet. It just changed everything. What am I looking for in artists?n (13:38):I probably talk to between 20 and 30 artists every single week, artists, projects, creators, and we probably filled about 100 requests per week, I would say right now. We have a really high bar. There's only three slots per week now. There's a showcase and there's two channels. And we book these things out for months in advance. The thing that resonates to me the most is artists that see themselves as more than just putting their pen or their paintbrush on paper, whatever their medium is, but as content creators as well. I think what attracted me to Degen Poet for a long time and I think why people love Degen Poet, yeah, the art is really good and I think that has to be there, but there's a lot of really good art. It's Degen Poet's personality. It's how that comes out in his work. (14:22):It's how he tells a story around his pieces. He publishes videos of the typewriter itself and the creation process. To me, we definitely have an eye for these kind of super artists who are brand building for themselves and have a vision for how to take care of their community in addition. To me, I mean, there's a lot of amazing artists in the world and if you just take blockchain out of it, you can walk into any gallery and see these incredible things. But there's this disconnect between the thing that you're buying and the person that made it and you. And in crypto, it gives this opportunity to cut out that piece and just connect directly with the creator. And if the creator takes advantage of that, that's very attractive to us. That tells me that they're thinking differently about what crypto can add to them. We have a pretty high bar, to be honest. (15:08):I mean I think we could fill up Drip with illustration and other techniques. There's a lot of amazing photographers, but I think at least in the early stages here, we have the opportunity to be curatorial a bit and relentlessly, we've been programming out our new channels trying to bring something different to the table each week. I think if you fast forwarded a year, it's going to be full of the same stuff that Instagram is full of and other big networks, it's just kind of natural. But right now we have an opportunity to keep a vision for what a collectible can kind of be. I don't know. I kind of know when I see it, but that's probably my framework. Brian Friel (15:44):Yeah. You hit on a couple things there with, not just just filling with great art, but the way that this can change the relationship between an artist and their fans. Degen Poet, from your experience, how has working with Drip influenced both the way that people discover your content, but also the relationships that you have with your collectors? Yeah, Degen Poet (16:01):Yeah. I mean it definitely makes it a much wider net, which is nice. They have a larger community to gather around. It feels like everyone who's kind of a channel in Drip is part of a little club or group or something. And so a lot of the same collectors will collect from multiple channels across Drip and things like that. There's more going on than just my art, but it still feels like a piece of a larger community. Everyone's kind of bringing a different style of Drip to the table. It takes less pressure off of my shoulders where I have to have my own Discord or be so focused and all these things. I could do that if I wanted, but I don't have to. Drip is big enough and has enough engagement from the tools that they provide that it helps sustain that better than I could than when I was alone. (16:47):And yeah, I guess you get a lot more people, right. You really do get people who would never have bought my art. And it's not because they didn't like it, they probably couldn't afford it or they didn't really know about it, but they happened to get in through Drip. And so get new people who earnestly really enjoy the art because that's how they found it. They found it from something free, they weren't trying to flip it and that's how they found it. Yeah, I don't know. It definitely casts a wider net and I feel you do boil up more people that just truly enjoy what you do versus the other side. Yeah, that's been great for that. Brian Friel (17:23):Yeah. I want to pause here and just dive into a topic that we mentioned briefly at the start, which is Solana. Degen Poet, you described your journey to finding Solana and I mentioned that I think if anyone's been around crypto Twitter, they know who you are. Prolific typewriter artist of Solana. Vibhu, you've been deeply involved with Solana for over a year and now. Why do you guys plant your flag in Solana, and what about Solana is able to make this a reality where no other blockchain can really do what Drip is doing? Vibhu Norby (17:51):I'm trying to refashion myself a little bit in our narrative because I mean you'll see on our Twitter page and on our site, occasionally we'll talk about Solana, but we've been trying to focus on the collectibles. I mean even with NFTs, I've eliminated using that word on our corporate account entirely in very specific cases. I don't think anybody on the consumer side really cares about that. But from the builder's perspective, two aspects. One is that they pioneered the state compression model, which allows us to do NFTs at a very, very big scale relative to the old version for a very low cost, a couple $100 per million, totally affordable for a business like us. And I think the second thing is that Solana has a really active developer community and some really amazing devs inside of it that are hunting for things to build. (18:35):And it's really competitive too. All the infrastructure around anything new on Solana develops fast. Perfect example of that is Tensor. We went live with it March 22nd, three months ago, and it's certainly been a couple weeks, maybe two or three weeks because they went live with trading on there. And it's an amazing experience and people can trade these compressed NFTs, 200 at a time and there's a brand new kind of thing, right. But it's not just them, there's B Man who built this tool called PopKey, it's Keerel who built the Drip tracker. There's just all these amazing 10X engineers, if you will, itching to be involved and be part of the Solana community. And we feel like anything that we can't get to, someone else is just going to build anyway. And hey, when we're ready, maybe we'll pick it up. Or maybe that tool just kind of develops its own path and we don't have to touch it. (19:28):And that thing is unique to crypto too because all of our NFTs are composable. It just really does. We're kept to such a high bar of development 'cause if we don't reach that bar, then three other companies are going to recreate what we're doing, do it better, and then people also going to just take our content and then do it better on top of our content and our data. I don't know about other chains, maybe they have that too, but I've just observed that Solana is, because of the size of our community and the energy there, seems to attack these things with a lot of vigor that I didn't see, at least in Ethereum when I was first getting into this space. Brian Friel (20:02):No, I couldn't agree more. I think Solana has carved out its own kernel of a genuine dev community. It's a double-edged sword like you say, because it's highly composable and you have this great force everyone will want to build with you, but it invites a lot of competition where if you do slack, there will be people who will take what you do and run with it. But I think so far you guys have done a really great job of really leading in this vertical of Solana. DP, do you have anything to add to what Vibhu said with respect to Solana, maybe from an artist's perspective? Degen Poet (20:31):As far as only possible on Solana, I definitely think it comes down to the compressed NFT. You can't cost effectively drop a million NFTs a week on any other blockchain, not even close to a 1,000X, not even close. I think that's the core of it that allows us to be different on Solana. But then all that other stuff, the unspoken kind of stuff is just the energy of the people here on the chain and the fact that Tensor and all the rest, not only do you have to be able to mint one million NFTs a week for low cost, but you also have to have people that can build stuff to do with them. And that is, I think, an underappreciated aspect of Solana. And I feel like Drip, from my perspective, all we have to do is just kind of continue growing the market for compressed NFTs, continue add channels and add people kind of doing stuff with compressed NFTs and then Solana will provide. As you get bigger and there's more market, more people want something, then Solana starts to make those things happen. I think we'll see that and that will be incredible. Vibhu Norby (21:32):I'm going to flip it back to you, Brian, as well. How is Drip breaking Phantom and what does Phantom need to address? Degen Poet (21:37):Yeah. When can I hold 5,000 NFTs please? Vibhu Norby (21:38):There you go. Brian Friel (21:41):Yeah, no, I would say from a dev perspective at Phantom side, we were early to support compressed NFTs, but it's almost a naive assumption that hey, we ship support and we'll be good because it basically is opening Pandora's box where now people just go wild whenever they're given a new medium to express with this kind of stuff. And we saw it firsthand with Tensor launching their NFT marketplace. We're getting requests, why can't I sign 5,000 transactions at once? You guys can't simulate 5,000 different transactions, but it makes us go back to basically first principles and what is the wallet being used for here? How should we be basically specializing the wallet and what do our users really want this for? And I think, Vibhu, you painted a great story at the start of this where eight months ago, the world was ending for all of Solana, they who should not be named. And in six to eight months, you've gone from that state to completely bootstrapping an organic network with hundreds of thousands of users who love and use this product every day. (22:34):How do we stay adaptable enough for that, huge question and a huge challenge and was really the fun of what's working in this space I think is all about. Vibhu, you mentioned a little bit too on the future of, I think you hinted a year out from now looking like Instagram. Can you say more about that? Vibhu Norby (22:49):Yeah. Depending on the day I wake up and I think about YouTube or Instagram or Twitch or Patreon or Roblox or you name it. There isn't a perfect analogy for this stuff because it kind of is a blend of a lot of different things. I mean literally every single day we're trying to address a problem in our product and we search for some mental model from some other place and see if that kind of makes sense. And not all of it does, but Instagram is such a simple product to talk about because it is a simple product. Everybody, not just creators, but normal people post photos to their feed or stories and then you follow their friends and you follow the celebrities or influencer, whatever that you like and that stuff shows up in your feed. And you think nothing of it. Okay, I go about my day, I open the app, I click something and I'm good, I'm happy, I close it. (23:43):But what's sitting underneath of Instagram is this advertising industrial complex that is calculating an enormous amount of data for every single thing that you do on the app. You open the story, how long did you open the story for? How many people are you connected to that also did the same thing? They're building profiles. I used to work on this stuff. I know this is what we do. Yeah, there's a reason for it. I don't think it's bad. I don't think advertising is bad. I want to put that out there. I know Anatolia thinks it's evil and it's part of the reason why he talks about Solana as the anti-spam control network, but it is good for small businesses, but the group that gets abused in that situation are the users and the creators that actually use the app. You go talk to any creator on any network that's not on the top 1% and they're making almost no money from these things. (24:33):We have an artist that's launching tomorrow called Bangers. He has 200,000 on Instagram. He has three and a half billion views of her content on Giffy. 'Cause she makes all these animated gifs and she told me that she made $20 from Giffy and almost nothing from Instagram ever. I mean we just don't think about it. But people build their livelihoods and businesses on these social platforms and increasingly so. I mean young people today, you ask them what they want to be when they grow up, it's not a firefighter. They want to be content creators, they want to be YouTubers, they want to be TikTokers, literally what they want to do. But when we examine these platforms and how they treat all of the kind of participants in that ecosystem, you just see this thing where all the power and all the money is aggregating inside of these couple of companies, ByteDance with TikTok, Facebook, Google, Amazon. (25:28):The trifecta of these trillion-dollar companies. Where I want to take Drip is, hey, let's take that model that we know people because people like to just follow someone and see their content, but let's start to tweak the internal economics of each of these components and do it in a way that over the next couple years, creators can make more money from this stuff. Even users might be able to make money, which is a very new concept, but it's something that is normal in crypto and just not normal in Web 2.0. If we can successfully build a model that's better, there's no reason why creators won't come over, it's just an awareness thing. Can we get the word out and can we make this easy to use and safe? I don't know if that's Instagram or it's YouTube or whatever. Instagram is the easiest thing to talk about. I think Drip is a really big idea. I hope that there's many other entrepreneurs that are looking at what we're doing and thinking, hey, maybe this kind of thing could apply in other categories too, and together we can come after these conglomerates, give the power back to the people and that would be a beautiful thing. Brian Friel (26:31):I couldn't agree more. Degen Poet, when you hear that and you take into consideration everything you told us about your journey starting on these fragmented marketplaces and everything and now everything that you've been doing with Drip, how do you think your relationship with Drip will evolve? Do you foresee the majority of your art being now distributed via platforms like these versus traditional mediums? Degen Poet (26:52):Yeah, for sure. Solana NFTs in the first place gave me a place for my art. I tried to be a poet in the real world and didn't really see the value in it even to publish a book and to get nothing back and to spend all the money to publish it, that kind of thing. Just NFTs and Solana in general as a first step was incredible to me to be able to make any kind of money off of my art period. And then that is what led me to become an artist. I wasn't making pictures or whatever before this, so it allowed me to exist as an artist in the first place. And then I guess I got hungry for the idea that you could live off this as a career or something. For me, I guess, I just want to create a space where people after me, people around me can do this seriously as 50% or more of their income for their lives. (27:45):I guess that's what I want to continue to push on at Drip, things like donations, et cetera, but finding a way to make them work and have them be something on a consistent basis that again, another artist can use that model and create a source of income that's reasonably dependable. A weekly Drip of donations I think is way more sustainable and understandable than when you're going to sell in your next auction. You sort of have a steady growth than all the rest of it. And so I don't know, it's just a better model to actually build a true career off of. Yeah, I don't know. For me, continue to find ways to take advantage of Drip and put all my work there that makes sense. I still have some one-on-ones outside of Drip, but I might even incorporate those into Drip someday. Yeah. I mean for me, as long as they let me Drip, I'm dripping. As long as the door is open for me, that's what I'm going to do for sure. Yeah. Vibhu Norby (28:43):Degen Poet is actually more close to the prototypical Solana artist than you would think. When I'm talking to an artist, I always ask, what's your full-time job? Very few of them are artists full-time. I mean that is really uncommon and it's really hard to make a living that way. Most of the artists that we work with are graphic designers and they make websites for clients and they're being creative maybe in some other way, but it isn't their source of income. And I don't think that if you look at this generation that wants to be content creators, that all of them can be content creators and make a living. Someone has to put food on the table, right. But you can add a little bit of extra for some of these folks and for the top 1% of them, or top 5% or top 10% of them to be able to make a reasonable living from doing this, I think is possible. (29:33):And my gold star metric for, I'm going to use Degen poet as our test baby, is how close can we get to replacing the income from his W2 job over the next year? We're actually not that far away. We're making progress and we continue to tweak that and it will pay back dividends. If he can be full-time on this and he'll be able to have, I don't know how he has a full-time job already. That part's a mystery to me, but in theory, more art, more content, more delight for people, that will help us grow too. DP and I are very aligned on that as a kind of a side quest to just getting art into people's hands. Brian Friel (30:08):Yeah. I think that's a great first goal. When you guys think about how we get to a world where the Degen Poets of the world can do this full time no questions asked, it's like an afterthought to even consider another job. Are there anything that you think that we need to change as an industry, something we should stop doing? And I ask this question because last time we had you on the show, Vibhu, you had a couple hot takes that you dropped, mostly around how a number grow up is very bad for the industry. I want to ask, has that thinking evolved at all for you, Vibhu? And then I also later want to hear some Degen Poet has any ideas on that as well. Vibhu Norby (30:41):I'm still on the same train. Number go up, number go down both equally bad in many different ways. The only thing is I really feel it when if you're sitting on Twitter all day, you really feel the price. You don't even have to look at the tweets. When Bitcoin was over 30K yesterday, I felt it. I didn't even have to look at my app. When Solana's down, you feel it. For better or for worse, the audience there is highly effective. And so I can't help but be empathetic to it, but it's actually an imperative for our industry to survive, especially in the US for us to move past the tokens, we have to. I strongly feel that, this is going to offend some people. I'm just trying to be careful how I say this. I think that the OG crypto community who was here in 2015 to 2017, the ICO era and these people are holding our industry back in a lot of ways. (31:37):I think they're all over our biggest applications and our biggest exchanges and this and that. And I think somewhere in the back of all these folks heads, they can't get over the fact that the bull market's going to come back again and they're going to have a Lambo. And it just doesn't make sense if we're serious about this being in the hands of billions of people, sorry, we can't make a Lambo for all seven, eight billion people on earth. Some of us have to drive a Honda Civic, some of us have to drive a bike. Can we get bike money for everybody? Can we get there first and let go of the kind of grasp of all the token people? That's where I'm at. I could be wrong. Maybe I'm flawed, maybe everyone can have a Lambo. I would love one, but that's not where I see the future. Degen Poet (32:20):Yeah. I mean I guess I feel similarly. I guess you want to create a space in the blockchain where the number go up and down doesn't really affect your day to day of enjoyment. You don't think about the price of a t-shirt or a box of Legos or whatever it is going up and down. You still just consume them because you want it or you like it here and there. I think of the Pokemon card analogy when it comes to this. I think with Drip House where they're just cards in general. I think there's a space for the legendaries or whatever it is, smaller supplies, having numbers go up. I do think that creates a lot of fun and excitement, brings people on, all that, but it really needs to be balanced with the day to day. Your reason for being here can't be that, because if it is, then it's like yeah, it doesn't feel sustainable and you're just building a system where there's a small amount of winners and most people are losers. And so it's like what are you really doing for the world at that point? We need to find a way to create value for digital assets that's just inherent in whatever the object is. It's not because of a price or a speculation, it's just because you value whatever the thing is. Brian Friel (33:31):Yeah, I couldn't agree more. I think you guys are on the right path here and I think a lot of people who use Drip every day are resonating with what you guys are doing. Well, guys, this has been a really awesome conversation. One question we always ask our guests, I'd love to hear this from each of you, maybe starting with Degen Poet, is who is a fellow builder that you admire in the Solana ecosystem? Degen Poet (33:52):I really like the Foxes a lot. I like drags and I like the Foxy Dev. I think that they've done an awesome job of trying to find actually useful stuff that people could use on Solana and bringing it into their system and I've seen them do some stuff overnight for people and all the rest of it. Really like them. Really like the guys at Tenor too. I mean the stuff that they've done for us in compressed NFTs is pretty incredible. Everyone on those teams is great. Brian Friel (34:21):I agree. Vibhu. Vibhu Norby (34:22):I'm going to recall 'cause I'm a second time guest, the answers I gave last time, 'cause it's kind of funny in retrospect. I think I mentioned Ahkshe from Super Team who I would give again and again. He's been such an amazing supporter of me and Drip and places before that. And I think at the time I also gave Frank Deca as my other answer. I still have a soft spot for him. I know he left Solana, but I can't help but admire the fanatical community building that he has. But yeah, I mean today, the couple of people that came to mind for me were, yeah, I mean the Tensor guys are amazing. These guys are just... A hilarious story. I pinged Ilia, the founder, yesterday and I asked them, hey, can I have a vector version of your logo? And I kid you'd not. The second I typed that, I see Ilia is typing and then three seconds later the vector file was there and I was like, did you just have this sitting on your desktop ready to drop into this? Brian Friel (35:15):Copied on the clipboard already? Yeah. Vibhu Norby (35:17):They really don't like that. Just really responsive. I respect that a lot. I want to give a shout-out to a guy named Carol who I won't dox him. He's a really impressive guy in real life and I got to know that after I spoke to him. There's these people in our community that are anonymous. I think he's an OK Bear or whatever, maybe a monkey business, and you find out their real life and they're like some VP of some big company. You just never know who you're talking to. But he's been, both for Drip and for Dialect, who I also listed as my admiration for, he's just been building stuff for free that benefit our communities and hundreds of thousands of people use those tools every single week to track their Drip collection. He's KIRYL_SOL, I believe he is his Twitter handle. Yeah, huge ups to that guy for carrying collectibles into the future. Brian Friel (36:06):I love it. These are all future guests of the podcast we're naming here. We have to get these guys on, have them tell their story as well. But yeah, Vibhu, Degen Poet, I just want to thank you guys from the Phantom team. We love everything that you guys are up to. We really think that Drip House arose at a time when Solana needed it most. We think you guys really carry a light forward for a way that pioneer's a new model for art on Solana, for artists making a living. Really excited for everything that you guys have to come. Thank you so much for your time on Zeitgeist. Degen Poet (36:33):Thanks for having us. Vibhu Norby (36:34):Thanks. Bye.
On today's episode we discuss the tech space with Microsoft buying Activision and what it means for cloud gaming. We touch on $MEME coin and the price action on Captainz and Potatoz and we have a new edition of "Buy, Sell or send it to 0" with Easy. Today's show is sponsored by Iconic Moments, they discuss their upcoming drop "Beyond the Edge". Iconic's Twitter Tune in live every weekday Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM Eastern to 10:15 AM. Buy our NFT Join our Discord Check out our Twitter Check out our YouTube Give us your thoughts on the show by leaving a rating. -- DISCLAIMER: You should never treat any opinion expressed by the hosts of this content as a recommendation to make a particular investment, or to follow a particular strategy. The thoughts and commentary on this show are an expression of the hosts' opinions and are for entertainment and informational purposes only. This show is never financial advice.
The Ordinal Show is a series of regular Twitter Spaces featuring conversations with amazing people from the Bitcoin Ordinals community. Every Mon at 10:30am ET & Wed at 6:30pm ET. Hosted by Trevor.btc, Jan and Leonidas. Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheOrdinalShow Subscribe to our Substack: https://theordinalshow.substack.com
That's it, folks, it's a wrap: PFPs are dead in the water, and today, Max and Colborn talk about why. Why PFP projects are flawed at their core, how they have no choice but to alienate their holders, and other musings from the autopsy of the world's most notorious NFT asset class. Some shots get fired in this one. Did YOUR favorite project catch a bullet? Listen and find out!
The Lucky Trader Podcast: NFT Interviews, Exclusives, & Info
In this two-part show, TylerD is joined first by the crew to talk through the surging crypto market and its impact on BTC Ordinals and the ETH NFT scene. They chat through the trends, concerns (low cap PFP sector) and what's driving the Yuga downturn. Then Nuno Cortesao from Zharta Finance joins the show to talk NFT lending, telling the Zharta story, describing its differentiators, thoughts on the NFT art scene vs PFPs, and what's coming next.
In this next podcast about another knee pain, we will talk about Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS). Also known as the runner's knee. We will discuss the symptoms that your patient will present with and worsen during activities like jumping, running or climbing stairs. Next, will be the various tests that should be done to confirm PFPS and the treatment options for your patient. Join Dr. Niket Sonpal as he explains all the bees knees. — Never pay for another course, workshop or seminar again. Become a member and get full access to every resource we've ever made. You'll also get 50 CAT 1 CMEs every calendar year as part of your membership. Click the link to learn more about becoming a member: Medgeeks All Access — Do you work in primary care medicine? Primary Care Medicine Essentials is our brand new program specifically designed for primary care providers to increase their core medical knowledge & improve patient flow optimization. Learn more here: Primary Care Essentials —
Traditional markets are not off to a great start today. The 21 day treasury auction ended yesterday at a yield of 6.2%, due to a lack of resolution about the debt ceiling talks. The auctioned bills are set to reach maturity around the "X-date", when the Treasury expects the government to no longer be able to pay its debts if Congress doesn't reach a deal. As the end of the month approaches the fear is escalating and the talk is getting louder. Bitcoin is down to $26.8k and the ETH is down to $1,741. It seems like the natural progression considering the state of the traditional markets. This looks like an appetizing dip, but be cautious as we are not in a stable environment. The dollar has been showing some strength which is actually dragging down the value of other things, like crypto. Whether or not the US actually runs out of cash remains to be seen, but our hosts agree that this is an unlikely event and the same people have been on the soap box saying these things for a while. If we come out on the other side of this properly, the rebound will be significant. Not really much to report over right with NFTs. We saw some more movement in the Artblocks ecosystem, which all started with the big Fidenza sales; we also saw some decent ape sales including a crown and gold grin. Miladys is still bringing decent volume since the Elon tweet but the floor has fallen to the 3 eth range.RarePass genesis' were swept and the floor is up to 15 eth.Captainz and the 9gag ecosystem are making waves and talks of the $MEME coin are still in the air. Legality, hype, untapped market and huge following are the perfect formula for a successful launch. @punk9059 thinks PFPs are in a rough state. Miladys have been dominating via BLEND volume. The current trend is a floor price pump after a BLEND announcement and then once its live a huge dump of supply from big holders. Events like a massive mutant ape dump in the hundreds or the looming holder who has ~400 CLoneX are keeping the market shaky. There are roughly 30 big farmers controlling the big bids and dumping. There are currently 24k ETH worth of bids on mutants meaning the liquidity is still there despite the feeling of a shrinking market. @k2_nft is a great account to follow to get informed on the BLEND bid/dump world.@Ledger recover has been delayed and put on the back burner. They have responded to the market's reaction about the recovery system. They are starting with a white paper on the recovery protocol and slowly making the OS open source. @cz_binance posted a video of China Central Television (CCTV) covering crypto topics that went viral. Starting from June 1st, the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong will be implementing a mandatory licensing regime for virtual asset trading platforms. @Alicia_MEXC thinks this is bullish news as it will bring in new participants and create a safer way for the public to interact.GM Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Lucky Trader Podcast: NFT Interviews, Exclusives, & Info
In this special conversation, Tyler is joined by machine learning modeler and DeepNFTValue founder Nikolai Yakovenko to talk 3AC Grails. The duo react to the surprising auction results at Sotheby's, walk through Niko's early predictions, and the difference in modeling art vs PFPs. Then they look ahead to the Golden Goose auction along with other upcoming 3AC Grails, talk through some highlights, and chat through if the market is too excited with the results.
In your organization: Do people struggle when it comes to collaboration or communication? Are your employee turnover rates too high and your engagement rates too low... leading to issues with productivity, customer satisfaction, revenue generation, and profitability? Do you struggle to set, keep, and communicate clear priorities that unify members of your team? Maybe it's time to look at your people practices. To strengthen internal and external relationships, employer brand, and full-circle engagement, it may be time to take a good, hard look at the interactions and practices of your people. At People First Productivity Solutions, we focus on the people parts of business, including:- Coaching for Executives, Managers & Sales Teams- Leadership Development for Leaders at Every Level- Training for Managers and Supervisors- Consulting on Team Effectiveness, Collaboration, Productivity, and People Practices- Employment Engagement, Communication, Soft Skills, and Critical Thinking To learn more about how PFPS can build your organizational strength by putting PEOPLE first, visit our website: www.peoplefirstps.com or email me at deb.calvert@peoplefirstps.com. You'll also find helpful resources at People First Leadership Academy: www.peoplefirstpotential.comDeb's Profilelinkedin.com/in/debcalvertpeoplefirstWebsitespeoplefirstps.com/ (Company)peoplefirstpotential.com.com/ (Other)Emaildeb.calvert@peoplefirstps.comTwitterPeopleFirstPSThe Leadercast PodcastThe fun way to grow you and your top talent.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyBuzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched! Start for FREEDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the showRebel HR is a podcast for HR professionals and leaders of people who are ready to make some disruption in the world of work. Please connect to continue the conversation! https://twitter.com/rebelhrguyhttps://www.facebook.com/rebelhrpodcasthttp://www.kyleroed.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-roed/
Want to know what it's like to become a premiere digital artist? Fvckrender is known worldwide as one of the premiere digital artists working today, but few know his story from skateboarder in the streets of Quebec to a leader of the NFT movement. Fvckrender joins Raoul to dig into that journey, the current status of the space, and where he sees NFTs and digital art going in the future. The pair also cover PFPs vs. one-of-ones, the current race to the bottom between Opensea and Blur, and the future of immersive art experiences. Recorded on April 4, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Want to know what it's like to become a premiere digital artist? Fvckrender is known worldwide as one of the premiere digital artists working today, but few know his story from skateboarder in the streets of Quebec to a leader of the NFT movement. Fvckrender joins Raoul to dig into that journey, the current status of the space, and where he sees NFTs and digital art going in the future. The pair also cover PFPs vs. one-of-ones, the current race to the bottom between Opensea and Blur, and the future of immersive art experiences. Recorded on April 4, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sam (Director of Research, PROOF) chats with Killabears Founder & CEO Ben Cohen about PFPs, NFT communities, and royalties. They discuss the history and the 10-year vision for Killabears, and lessons learned along the way. Finally, the two talk about building a PFP NFT brand in the current NFT landscape. Follow Ben on Twitter | https://twitter.com/mr_benft Follow Killabears on Twitter | https://twitter.com/killabearsnft _________ Stay connected with PROOF: Sam (NFTstatistics) on Twitter | http://twitter.com/punk9059 Check out PROOF Daily Countdown on YouTube | https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsvBBjkB4w7b1rL4uzAqM894nzYxDc2-1 Turn Notifications on for Proof Podcasts on Twitter | http://twitter.com/proofpodcasts __________ 00:00 Intro 02:11 Long-Term Viability for PFPs 05:31 Killabears -History -Animation -Target Market 13:41 Accessibility 15:21 10-Year Vision for Killabears 17:05 Ben's Intro to Web3 22:40 Marketing & Building the “Next Marvel Universe” 27:09 Lessons Learned So Far 29:26 Community Interactions 33:40 Royalties 38:08 Open Editions 44:07 Building a Brand
Today is Valentines day, but unfortunately for most degens in the space it is mores Airdrop day with the Blur marketplace set to release their $BLUR into participants wallets during the time of this being written. The stage had a ton of speculation about where the liquid from the airdrop will end up and how much it will actually be worth. Most are hopeful that it will be a successful boost to the NFT economy. Yesterday was the Cory Van Lew Faces of Web3 reveal day and it was received well by the community. The art is phenomenal and the PFPs are already finding their forever homes with people identifying with the different trait combinations right off the back. We were joined by Everbloom who is creating a way to share revenue from select Youtube creators who by offering an NFT linked to said creator on their platform. there are different tiers and a giveaway if you listen in to the end of the conversation. Full notes here: Gldn's Notes Everbloom is on @ 15:42GM Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In today's episode, Fanzo welcomes AlephOne back to the NFT365 podcast. He is the founder of the ApeLiquid NFT project and was last on as a guest in April 2022. Fanzo and Aleph talk about the journey of the ApeLiquid project and how it has evolved over the past year. It is a multifaceted project with amazing art, multiple PFPs, a forge (staking) mechanism for super-community NFTs, an ERC-20 token $METL, and more recently, an on-chain RPG game. Many ecosystem components were airdropped and gifted, supporting the collective philosophy of “making all apes liquid.” The community has grown rapidly, and its activity during the bear speaks to its tight community and engaging dynamic. Follow Guest: https://twitter.com/aleph0ne https://twitter.com/ApeLiquidio https://apeliquid.io/ Listen to AlephOne's original interview from April 2022! https://open.spotify.com/episode/3NFb4HaSMrgElVZOrjIFXa?si=OK8HWe1CQKu5HOsHewMLzQ Learn more about the NFT365 Podcast
In today's episode, we're talking about what's hot on Arbitrum. Three Arbitrum experts are here to help guide us through what's new in the Arbitrum ecosystem. The Arbitrum metrics are HOT. 2022 was not the best year for crypto, but they were for L2s, and especially for Arbitrum! Tune in to learn why and how Arbitrum is shaping the future of L2s, gaming, and NFTs as we know it. ------
We catch up with Kaigani, famous decompiler of the CryptoKitty genome, and chat PFPs, Meebits DAO, his ArtBlocks projects, artist sustainability, Hollywood and of course his current project, Mxtter.
Brought to you by Maui Nui Venison wildly delicious venison, Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, and Allform premium, modular furniture. Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is usually my job to interview world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life. This episode is something different.It's an exploration of my creative process, how I think about first principles, and how to get serious things done without being serious all the time. In this case, I am the guest and Kevin Rose (@KevinRose) is the host. Who is Kevin? Kevin is a technologist, serial entrepreneur, world-class investor, self-experimenter, and all-around wild and crazy guy.For more on The Legend of CØCKPUNCH®, visit cockpunch.com and follow on Twitter (@cockpunch). Mint date is coming up soon, so make sure to follow that Twitter account for news, as well as @tferriss and @TimTimNifties. I will also be announcing next steps via my newsletter, and you can sign up at tim.blog/friday.Please note: 100% of NFT primary sale proceeds are being donated to the Saisei Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit private foundation that funds cutting-edge scientific research and other initiatives related to psychedelic medicine, mental health therapeutics, and much more.The episode you're about to hear was originally published on the PROOF podcast, a podcast hosted by Kevin, which provides in-depth NFT coverage.The PROOF podcast is part of PROOF (@proof_xyz). PROOF is creating community-centric products that celebrate art, connect collectors, and activate creative entrepreneurship. Under the PROOF umbrella, they have the PROOF Collective, a private collective of 1,000 dedicated NFT collectors and artists. There is also Grails—which I am a part of—PROOF-curated collections with artists revealed post-mint. Moonbirds, of course. A collection of 10,000 utility-enabled PFPs featuring a diverse pool of traits.There's more and more. Kevin is doing a phenomenal job, and I suggest you check out what they're doing. And now, let's take a trip to crazy town, shall we? I hope you enjoy this as much as I did…*This episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system. Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That's up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.*This episode is also brought to you by Maui Nui Venison. I've been eating Maui Nui Venison for the past two years, and there's no going back. My pantry and freezers are full of it, and I restock every month. Why? (1) If I combine Maui Nui Venison with even a little exercise, I drop body fat unbelievably quickly. (2) It tastes delicious and isn't gamey. (3) Ethically, I feel great about Maui Nui protein, as axis deer are an invasive species on Maui, where their population needs to be managed in order to protect vulnerable ecosystems.Harvested using stress-free methods, Maui Nui's fresh venison is clean-tasting, tender, and one of the most nutrient-dense meats on the planet. Maui Nui is a nearly daily go-to for me, both as a supplement to my daily diet (with broth, jerky snacks, etc.) and through main courses (via their fresh-meat subscription program). I fell in love with this company so much that I ended up investing, which is a rarity.Tim Ferriss Show listeners can get 15% off on practically everything Maui Nui is offering by visiting MauiNuiVenison.com/Tim! Just use code TIM at checkout. This is the first discount they have done in more than a year, so you are getting something special, folks!*This episode is also brought to you by Allform! If you've been listening to the podcast for a while, you've probably heard me talk about Helix Sleep mattresses, which I've been using since 2017. They also launched a company called Allform that makes premium, customizable sofas and chairs shipped right to your door—at a fraction of the cost of traditional stores. You can pick your fabric (and they're all spill, stain, and scratch resistant), the sofa color, the color of the legs, and the sofa size and shape to make sure it's perfect for you and your home.Allform arrives in just 3–7 days, and you can assemble it yourself in a few minutes—no tools needed. To find your perfect sofa and receive 20% off all orders, check out Allform.com/Tim.*For show notes and past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show, please visit tim.blog/podcast.For deals from sponsors of The Tim Ferriss Show, please visit tim.blog/podcast-sponsorsSign up for Tim's email newsletter (5-Bullet Friday) at tim.blog/friday.For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts.Discover Tim's books: tim.blog/books.Follow Tim:Twitter: twitter.com/tferriss Instagram: instagram.com/timferrissYouTube: youtube.com/timferrissFacebook: facebook.com/timferriss LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/timferrissPast guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld, Hugh Jackman, Dr. Jane Goodall, LeBron James, Kevin Hart, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Esther Perel, Elizabeth Gilbert, Terry Crews, Sia, Yuval Noah Harari, Malcolm Gladwell, Madeleine Albright, Cheryl Strayed, Jim Collins, Mary Karr, Maria Popova, Sam Harris, Michael Phelps, Bob Iger, Edward Norton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Neil Strauss, Ken Burns, Maria Sharapova, Marc Andreessen, Neil Gaiman, Neil de Grasse Tyson, Jocko Willink, Daniel Ek, Kelly Slater, Dr. Peter Attia, Seth Godin, Howard Marks, Dr. Brené Brown, Eric Schmidt, Michael Lewis, Joe Gebbia, Michael Pollan, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Vince Vaughn, Brian Koppelman, Ramit Sethi, Dax Shepard, Tony Robbins, Jim Dethmer, Dan Harris, Ray Dalio, Naval Ravikant, Vitalik Buterin, Elizabeth Lesser, Amanda Palmer, Katie Haun, Sir Richard Branson, Chuck Palahniuk, Arianna Huffington, Reid Hoffman, Bill Burr, Whitney Cummings, Rick Rubin, Dr. Vivek Murthy, Darren Aronofsky, Margaret Atwood, Mark Zuckerberg, Peter Thiel, Dr. Gabor Maté, Anne Lamott, Sarah Silverman, Dr. Andrew Huberman, and many more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
✨ SUBSCRIBE TO THE OVERPRICED JPEGS CHANNEL ✨ https://bankless.cc/jpegs On this episode of Overpriced JPEGs, Carly brings on NFT thought leader— and shitposter - Degentraland. Previously with Goldman Sachs, Degentraland's macro insight is as strong as his pulse on NFTs. Carly and Degentraland cover inflation, interest rates, and equities, while also getting into a framework for valuing NFTs, the Doodles business model, and why Degentraland is so bullish on Otherside Meta. Enjoy! ------
✨ SUBSCRIBE TO THE OVERPRICED JPEGS CHANNEL ✨ https://bankless.cc/jpegs On this episode of Overpriced JPEGs, Carly is joined in-person with Andrew Wang, NFT thought leader, journalist, and, more recently, artist and co-founder at Devotion. Carly & Andrew talk about the future of 10k PFP projects, Andrew's touching journey to NFTs, his rise to web3 fame, Cool Cats, and, of course, his latest venture, Devotion. This is a side of Andrew that many people haven't had a chance to see and we like the Andrew! As always, we hope you enjoy the conversation! ------
In this episode of the Making Bank podcast, we welcome Sean Kelly, the founder of the Chibi Dinos NFT project, which sold all 10000 of its PFPs in 18 minutes, generating around 2.4 million dollars in revenue. He is also the founder and CEO of Jersey Champs and the marketing agency NFT Gorillas which recently got acquired. Sean is currently working as the Vice President of Web3 Marketing at InfiniteWorld, a metaverse infrastructure company. Sean talks about how he entered the NFT and dives into NFTs and what makes them valuable. He talks about his journey in the NFT space and answers some of the questions you may have as a newcomer. Listen to Josh and Sean discuss NFTs: (2:22) Sean's Start As An Entrepreneur Sean's entrepreneurial career started when he was in college. He founded Jersey Champs, where he would go on to sell custom throwback jerseys. Jersey Champs was his entry into the e-commerce world, and through drop shipping, he was able to make his first six figures. When COVID came around, Sean's e-commerce business took a hit. However, at the time, he saw Gary V and the buzz around NBA top shots, and he exposed himself to the NFT creators, and within a few months, he was able to understand the NFT space. (5:47) What Is An NFT NFT stands for Non-Fungible Token. However, Sean explains that he sees NFTs as a proof of ownership. Whether a video snippet or a static image, you can prove your ownership to everyone as long as it's documented on the blockchain. (10:43) NFTs And Utility The NFT space is continuing to evolve. What started out as static images and video snippets of cool art has now grown to a point where people ask what they get in return for buying an NFT. Sean talks about NFTs having a utility that allows them to reward their holders. For example, with his own NFT project, Chibi Dinos — there are in-person meetups, calls with NBA players, and they're also working on a game. So now, if an NFT project wants to be looked at as valuable, they need to think of creative ways to provide utility to their holders. (14:15) Minting NFTs Sean talks about why people buy NFTs — some people are flippers who buy NFTs looking to sell them and make a profit, while some buy into established projects for the community. Sean explains NFT minting, which means a person pays a fee to mint, so an NFT project launches, and that person gets a randomly assigned NFT. Doing this opens the possibility of getting assigned a really rare NFT that could go for a lot of money. Essentially, that person is taking a chance on the NFT launch, but they are also helping the project owners execute their plan for that project by supporting them. (17:43) Sean On Selling His Marketing Agency Sean had also founded a marketing agency known as NFT Gorilla that aimed to help and consult upcoming NFT Projects and Brands with their marketing. His marketing agency was recently acquired after just six months of its inception. InfiniteWorld was looking for someone to take over their Web3 marketing role and hired Sean as their VP of Web3 Marketing and Strategy. (19:19) Things To Know About Today's NFT Space Today the NFT space is evolving, and more people are hopping on the NFT wave. So Sean advised newcomers to be wary of the NFT projects they support. The most important thing to do is research the team behind the project. It's also essential to see if there are only flippers since they're in it to profit from their investments. Sean also mentions being cautious of celebrity NFTs, a lot of them are just cash grabs, so it's crucial to stay away from the hype because hype can and usually will die out. So be careful, do your research and look for projects that have established team members. You might be able to make some money but, more importantly, be exposed to a valuable community of people. Links mentioned: Chibidinos.io Twitter: seankelly25 Instagram: seanmikekelly LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sean-mike-kelly/
In this episode of the Making Bank podcast, we welcome Sean Kelly, the founder of the Chibi Dinos NFT project, which sold all 10000 of its PFPs in 18 minutes, generating around 2.4 million dollars in revenue. He is also the founder and CEO of Jersey Champs and the marketing agency NFT Gorillas which recently got acquired. Sean is currently working as the Vice President of Web3 Marketing at InfiniteWorld, a metaverse infrastructure company. Sean talks about how he entered the NFT and dives into NFTs and what makes them valuable. He talks about his journey in the NFT space and answers some of the questions you may have as a newcomer. Listen to Josh and Sean discuss NFTs: (2:22) Sean's Start As An Entrepreneur Sean's entrepreneurial career started when he was in college. He founded Jersey Champs, where he would go on to sell custom throwback jerseys. Jersey Champs was his entry into the e-commerce world, and through drop shipping, he was able to make his first six figures. When COVID came around, Sean's e-commerce business took a hit. However, at the time, he saw Gary V and the buzz around NBA top shots, and he exposed himself to the NFT creators, and within a few months, he was able to understand the NFT space. (5:47) What Is An NFT NFT stands for Non-Fungible Token. However, Sean explains that he sees NFTs as a proof of ownership. Whether a video snippet or a static image, you can prove your ownership to everyone as long as it's documented on the blockchain. (10:43) NFTs And Utility The NFT space is continuing to evolve. What started out as static images and video snippets of cool art has now grown to a point where people ask what they get in return for buying an NFT. Sean talks about NFTs having a utility that allows them to reward their holders. For example, with his own NFT project, Chibi Dinos — there are in-person meetups, calls with NBA players, and they're also working on a game. So now, if an NFT project wants to be looked at as valuable, they need to think of creative ways to provide utility to their holders. (14:15) Minting NFTs Sean talks about why people buy NFTs — some people are flippers who buy NFTs looking to sell them and make a profit, while some buy into established projects for the community. Sean explains NFT minting, which means a person pays a fee to mint, so an NFT project launches, and that person gets a randomly assigned NFT. Doing this opens the possibility of getting assigned a really rare NFT that could go for a lot of money. Essentially, that person is taking a chance on the NFT launch, but they are also helping the project owners execute their plan for that project by supporting them. (17:43) Sean On Selling His Marketing Agency Sean had also founded a marketing agency known as NFT Gorilla that aimed to help and consult upcoming NFT Projects and Brands with their marketing. His marketing agency was recently acquired after just six months of its inception. InfiniteWorld was looking for someone to take over their Web3 marketing role and hired Sean as their VP of Web3 Marketing and Strategy. (19:19) Things To Know About Today's NFT Space Today the NFT space is evolving, and more people are hopping on the NFT wave. So Sean advised newcomers to be wary of the NFT projects they support. The most important thing to do is research the team behind the project. It's also essential to see if there are only flippers since they're in it to profit from their investments. Sean also mentions being cautious of celebrity NFTs, a lot of them are just cash grabs, so it's crucial to stay away from the hype because hype can and usually will die out. So be careful, do your research and look for projects that have established team members. You might be able to make some money but, more importantly, be exposed to a valuable community of people. Links mentioned: Chibidinos.io Twitter: seankelly25 Instagram: seanmikekelly LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sean-mike-kelly/
In this episode, we are going to talk about 7 deadly mistakes when launching an NFT based on our own journey! TIME-STAMPED SHOW NOTES: [01:16] - NFT Messaging “Keep It Simple and Stupid” [01:52] - Having not enough offer [03:33] - Not Launching NFT with PFPs [05:10] - Waiting “Too Long” to Launch [06:09] - Not enough collaboration [07:26] - Working with the wrong person! [08:00] - Not enough content (Youtube, Podcasts, Twitter Spaces) Leveling Up Heroes NFT:
The Random Show with Kevin Rose — Current Books, Men's Groups, Tuna Helper, the Latest in NFTs, Fierce Intimacy, and More | Brought to you by Wealthfront automated investing, Ascent Protein premium protein, and Shopify global commerce platform providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business.Technologist, serial entrepreneur, world-class investor, self-experimenter, and all-around wild and crazy guy Kevin Rose (@KevinRose) rejoins me for another episode of The Random Show.In this one we discuss the books that we are currently reading, outdated behaviors, healing with men's groups, masculinity, Kevin's new Moonbirds project (a collection of 10,000 utility-enabled PFPs), my first NFT, and much, much more.Please enjoy!This episode is brought to you by Wealthfront! Wealthfront pioneered the automated investing movement, sometimes referred to as ‘robo-advising,' and they currently oversee $27 billion of assets for their clients. It takes about three minutes to sign up, and then Wealthfront will build you a globally diversified portfolio of ETFs based on your risk appetite and manage it for you at an incredibly low cost. Smart investing should not feel like a rollercoaster ride. Let the professionals do the work for you. Go to Wealthfront.com/Tim and open a Wealthfront account today, and you'll get your first $5,000 managed for free, for life. Wealthfront will automate your investments for the long term. Get started today at Wealthfront.com/Tim.*This episode is also brought to you by Ascent Protein! Ever since I wrote The 4-Hour Body, starting my day with ~30 grams of protein has been an essential part of my routine. I've been using Ascent's whey protein for the last several years, and I recently tried their new plant-based protein. I've experimented with many other plant-based proteins, and most compromise on taste or efficacy, but Ascent Plant Protein is delicious and provides 25 grams of protein with 4 grams of BCAAs to support muscle health.To ensure their product tastes great, Ascent verified it with third-party consumer research, and it won on taste and texture against the market leader. What's more, it's made from organic, real-food sources like organic pea, pumpkin, and sunflower and contains zero artificial ingredients, artificial sweeteners, or added sugars. Visit AscentProtein.com/Tim and use the code 20TFASCENT and you'll receive 20% off of your entire purchase. This code is valid on their website and on Amazon.com. If you want a quick dose of protein to start your day or end a workout, this is a great option and my default. Enjoy!*This episode is also brought to you by Shopify! Shopify is one of my favorite platforms and one of my favorite companies. Shopify is a platform designed for anyone to sell anywhere, giving entrepreneurs the resources once reserved for big business. In no time flat, you can have a great looking online store that brings your ideas to life, and you can have the tools to manage your day-to-day and drive sales. No coding or design experience required.More than a store, Shopify grows with you, and they never stop innovating, providing more and more tools to make your business better and your life easier. Go to Shopify.com/tim for a FREE 14-day trial and get full access to Shopify's entire suite of features.*For show notes and past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show, please visit tim.blog/podcast.Sign up for Tim's email newsletter (5-Bullet Friday) at tim.blog/friday.For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts.Discover Tim's books: tim.blog/books.Follow Tim:Twitter: twitter.com/tferriss Instagram: instagram.com/timferrissYouTube: youtube.com/timferrissFacebook: facebook.com/timferriss LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/timferrissPast guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld, Hugh Jackman, Dr. Jane Goodall, LeBron James, Kevin Hart, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Esther Perel, Elizabeth Gilbert, Terry Crews, Sia, Yuval Noah Harari, Malcolm Gladwell, Madeleine Albright, Cheryl Strayed, Jim Collins, Mary Karr, Maria Popova, Sam Harris, Michael Phelps, Bob Iger, Edward Norton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Neil Strauss, Ken Burns, Maria Sharapova, Marc Andreessen, Neil Gaiman, Neil de Grasse Tyson, Jocko Willink, Daniel Ek, Kelly Slater, Dr. Peter Attia, Seth Godin, Howard Marks, Dr. Brené Brown, Eric Schmidt, Michael Lewis, Joe Gebbia, Michael Pollan, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Vince Vaughn, Brian Koppelman, Ramit Sethi, Dax Shepard, Tony Robbins, Jim Dethmer, Dan Harris, Ray Dalio, Naval Ravikant, Vitalik Buterin, Elizabeth Lesser, Amanda Palmer, Katie Haun, Sir Richard Branson, Chuck Palahniuk, Arianna Huffington, Reid Hoffman, Bill Burr, Whitney Cummings, Rick Rubin, Dr. Vivek Murthy, Darren Aronofsky, and many more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Stuart Levi, co-head of the Technology Transaction and Intellectual Property Group at Skadden Arps, and Marta Belcher, general counsel and Head of Policy at Protocol Labs, break down the legal issues surrounding NFTs specifically in the context of Yuga Labs' recent purchase of CryptoPunks and Meebits IP rights. Show highlights: the definitions and differences between copyrights, trademarks, and rights of publicity (name, image, likeness) how NFT projects have evolved in the past 12-18 months and what that means for the rights of NFT holders why NBA Top Shot's licensing model is the best model for famous brands entering the NFT space how the popularity of PFPs and the open-source ethos of crypto has led to confusion regarding the commercial rights of NFT holders what you are getting when you buy an NFT (hint, it's not copyright) the misconceptions surrounding Yuga Labs' acquisition of Crypto Punks and Meebits why Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT holders most likely cannot use the Bored Ape Yacht Club brand or logo what issues web3 projects face in getting NFT holders to accept terms and conditions why web3 projects should protect their trademark what a Creative Commons license is, and how it can be used in the NFT space what sort of licenses exist in the NFT space why secondary sales and transfers of NFTs pose such massive problems for copyright and trademark owners how marketplaces are handling terms and conditions what NFT projects can do to help the transfer of copyrights and trademarks Announcing The Cryptopians Book Clubs! On April 26th, I will be selling NFT tickets to five 90-minute virtual book clubs in which 22 people can discuss "The Cryptopians" with me and with each other — without worrying about spoilers! Two of the book clubs will also feature special guests. The sale will go live on Tuesday, April 26, at 1pm ET/10am PT, and tickets will be $100 each. (The sale will be on Bitski, but the NFTs will not be visible until the sale goes live on the 26th): https://www.bitski.com/@laurashin/created Here is the schedule: Monday May 2, at 8pm ET/5pm PT with Laura Shin Tuesday, May 3, at a time TBD with guests Christoph Jentzsch, Lefteris Karapetsas, and Griff Green Thursday, May 5, at 6pm CET/12pm ET/9am PT with Laura Shin Monday, May 9, at 6pm CET/12pm ET/9am PT with guest Andrey Ternovskiy Tuesday, May 10, at 9pm CET/3pm ET/12pm PT with Laura Shin If you'd like to participate, be sure to mark your calendars for the sale time on April 26th. Hope to see you in one of the book clubs! Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com: https://crypto.onelink.me/J9Lg/unconfirmedcardearnfeb2021 Beefy Finance: https://beefy.finance Cross River Bank: https://crossriver.com/crypto Galaxis: https://galaxis.xyz/ Episode Link: Marta Belcher https://www.linkedin.com/in/martabelcher https://twitter.com/MartaBelcher Stuart Levi https://www.linkedin.com/in/stuartlevi/ Content on NFT IP/Legal Issues Josh Durham on IP rights and NFTs https://lexdao.substack.com/p/protecting-your-nft-personal-property-rights?s=r Punk 6529 on CryptoPunks and Yuga Labs https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1502595586960367617.html Decrypt on stolen IP https://decrypt.co/96637/nfts-have-a-problem-with-copyright-theft Why IP rights are meaningless https://twitter.com/nftlawguy/status/1509233036369416192 IP questions from DC Investor https://twitter.com/iamDCinvestor/status/1509187304027529222 The Copyright NFT bible https://medium.com/initc3org/copyright-vulnerabilities-in-nfts-317e02d8ae26 What Exactly Do You Get When You Buy an NFT? Three Lawyers Discuss https://unchainedpodcast.com/what-exactly-do-you-get-when-you-buy-an-nft-three-lawyers-discuss/ Difference between copyright and trademark https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/small-business/trademark-vs-copyright