⫹⫺ Why I Bought a .jpg For $3400
⫹⫺ Why I Bought a .jpg For $3400
For the Creators, Makers & Doers - CMMN WLTH 037
Hello my friends,
(Sorry for the clickbait title)
I bought my first NFT.
Over the weekend, I was telling a friend about it and their response was simply: “What did you actually buy?”
I bought a .jpg file.
And before we go any further, here it is ↓
What is it? Titled Stimaes, an AI studied three Matisse artworks (The Snail, Memory of Oceania & The Codomas) for 180 days and produced 333 masterpieces from the data.
Why did I buy it? Simply, the upsides outweighed the downsides.
Potential upsides: I’m learning about a new technology, gaining first hand experience of the community, and maybe I’ll make some money if I sell it.
Potential downside: I waste some money. (Max. risk = 1 Ethereum which at today’s rate is $3400)
But, back to the original question, what did I actually buy?
Well, I own some digital artwork.
The proof of ownership is on the Ethereum blockchain and of course, you can right click and save it to your desktop, but only I have the original. In the same way that anyone can own a picture of a Matisse, but only one person can own the original.
The most interesting part of the journey so far has been joining the collectors’ Discord server.
I’ve highlighted in this newsletter how disruptive I believe Discord will be for generic social media and my experience has only made me more sure of that prediction.
I’m truly fascinated by The Metaverse, the collision of physical and digital and how communities are being built, bypassing FAANG companies completely.
It’s still early,
Product
On the subject of art and value. An exceptional article on why data doesn’t value creativity.
Strava pioneered the gamification of running and cycling. Here’s a great thread on its origins and what its future looks like.
The U.S. generates the equivalent of 46lb of electronics waste per person yet recycles only 15%. To combat this, Microsoft will release the “Ocean Plastic Mouse” made of 20% recycled ocean plastic and packaging that is 100 percent recyclable. And it looks great…
People
“I often encounter writers that share “success advice” learned from a blogger who was quoting a book that interviewed a notable prolific person.” Don’t fall into the expert trap.
I’ve read a lot of career change stories but this one proves that it’s never too late. Pursue your passion.
A look back at Tim Cook’s apple. And what the future may hold for the world’s most valuable company.
Methods
After a long day at work, why do you find yourself lying in bed prolonging the misery instead of getting some sleep? Procrastination can be a sign of underlying rage.
It’s a belief that is shared by Jobs, Bezos and Musk. An introduction to Kodawari, the relentless pursuit of perfection.
Dopamine is critical for learning and motivation. Here’s a thorough explanation of what it does, how it’s created and why more is not necessarily better.
Out of Office
Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari is a book that tilts your understanding of the world.
It’s been a while since I read it and I was looking for some cliff notes to refresh my memory when I found Neil Kakkar’s “If Sapien’s Was a Blog Post”.
A great resource to keep coming back to.
If you find this newsletter useful please share it with your most curious friends & colleagues ↓
Last Week's Numbers
Weekly subscribers: 155 (+1) ⬆️
Open rate: 42% ⬇️
Twitter followers: 26 ➡️