CryptoPunks have changed hands again, with Ribbit Capital as the backer. Will this bring new opportunities for development?

Written by: Zen, PANews

The pioneer of NFTs, CryptoPunks, has officially changed hands again after being sold to the developers of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), Yuga Labs.

On the evening of May 13, the iconic NFT and crypto art piece CryptoPunks officially changed hands — a foundation named Infinite Node (abbreviated as "NODE") acquired it from Yuga Labs. Although the terms of the deal have not been disclosed, according to reports from media outlet NFT Now citing multiple informed sources, NODE paid approximately 20 million dollars for this acquisition. As a result of this news, the floor price of CryptoPunks also rose from 42 ETH to 47.5 ETH.

CryptoPunks and the new "Home" NODE

The "NFT Pioneer" CryptoPunks was launched by Larva Labs in 2017 and is widely regarded as a catalyst for the modern digital art movement. Larva Labs is a creative technology company founded by Matt Hall and John Watkinson. Thanks to the significant importance and far-reaching impact of CryptoPunks, which has accumulated over $3.07 billion in transaction volume, these two creators have also ranked among the best-selling living artists.

In March 2022, Larva Labs transferred the intellectual property of CryptoPunks and another work, Meebits, to Yuga Labs. Three years later, CryptoPunks changed hands again and found a new home at NODE.

Yuga co-founder Wylie Aronow (also known as "Gordon Goner") commented: "We have always been dedicated to enhancing and protecting their cultural legacy, but we have always understood that Punks need a permanent home to carry on. Seeing this vision realized with the help of the Node Foundation feels like going back to where it all began. They are the most capable of protecting the cultural legacy of Punks."

The NODE Foundation was founded by Ribbit Capital founders Micky Malka and Becky Kleiner. It is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation, research, and exhibition of digital art. Its aim is to elevate the status of internet-native artworks and integrate them into broader cultural and academic discussions.

In April of this year, the NODE Foundation announced that it had received $25 million in funding from Malka and Kleiner to advance its vision for the future of digital art. The organization describes itself as a "perpetual fund driven by mission" and stated that this acquisition "opens up a new model for protecting internet-native culture."

Paving the Way for Mainstream Art

Even though the sales of CryptoPunks surpass those of all living contemporary artists, they have never made it onto traditional art rankings nor entered the mainstream discourse. NODE believes that addressing this cultural gap requires redefining the experience of digital art.

"Our goal is to build a networked architecture that allows digital art, such as CryptoPunks, to thrive in the digital realm and be incorporated into the grand narrative of art history." NODE signifies the continuation and promotion of the Punk spirit, and aims to achieve this through three main pillars:

Preservation: Relying on advanced blockchain infrastructure to ensure the technical integrity and long-term availability of CryptoPunks;

Community: Build an active ecosystem that connects digital innovators and art lovers;

Expansion: Create new scenarios where CryptoPunks can be studied and showcased both as examples of technological innovation and as artistic achievements.

NODE plans to build a permanent exhibition hall in Palo Alto to showcase all 10,000 CryptoPunks. The hall will also run an Ethereum full node, enhancing the accessibility and permanence of the collection. Micky Malka stated, "Through museum-quality preservation methods and a perpetual donation fund, we aim to establish a future-oriented guarantee for this milestone work and make it easier for scholars, curators, and collectors to interact with it."

To achieve the above goals, NODE has formed an advisory committee composed of well-known figures from the CryptoPunks community and the crypto art world, including Matt Hall and John Watkinson, Wylie Aronow, and Art Blocks founder Erick Calderon (also known as "Snowfro"). During the transition period, Natalie Stone will be hired as an advisor to the NODE team, responsible for the management of the project.

Guarding Cultural Fundamentalism

After the announcement of the acquisition, the community generally interpreted it as positive news. Subsequently, the floor price of CryptoPunks rose from 42 ETH to 47.5 ETH.

"This is undoubtedly good news for punks," said CryptoPunks holder @VonMises14, expressing high praise for this acquisition. He believes "this means that the punks IP has found its 'destination', where it can grow and thrive without any form of monetization or corruption."

Due to the experience of some blue-chip NFTs like "Self-Destructing Great Wall" and CryptoPunks nearly being "contaminated," the Punks community is particularly concerned about brand value and cultural purity.

A year ago, Yuga Labs launched the Super Punk World NFT series based on CryptoPunks, which faced strong opposition and criticism from the community. Most people believed that the excessive "woke culture" displayed by Super Punk World seriously deviated from the core essence of the original Punks, with many outright stating that Yuga Labs was ruining the Punks. In response to the strong backlash, Yuga Labs co-founder Greg Solano immediately stated: "We will no longer touch CryptoPunks, we will only decentralize it and keep it on the blockchain," and mentioned plans to support museums and institutions in acquiring it to promote the original work to the public.

However, protecting the cultural value of CryptoPunks as art may require controlling how they are used, copied, or monetized. As attorney @jabranthelawyer, who focuses on the Web3 field, pointed out: "If NODE follows traditional 'cultural protection strategies', it is not hard to imagine new restrictions: will the freedom to commercialize Punks be reduced? Will the control over derivative projects be stricter? Will restrictions be imposed in the name of 'cultural integrity'?"

Yuga Labs immediately granted IP usage rights and commercialization licenses to NFT holders after acquiring CryptoPunks, allowing them to create, display, and monetize freely on personal and commercial levels. Whether NODE will retain these commercial rights after this acquisition remains uncertain for now.

That said, this is probably not the main concern of the punk community; for them, perhaps not getting involved is the best choice.