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NFTs
OpinionComment
Dennis Lee
Dennis Lee

Opinion | Are NFT artworks and collectibles worthy of all the hype?

  • Minting and exchanging NFTs consumes large amounts of energy, seemingly needlessly
  • Rather, we should use technology sensibly, to improve our lives and not rush blindly to embrace the latest meaningless trend

Reading Time:3 minutes
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A series of NFT artworks collectively titled ‘MVP Most Valuable Painting’ by artist Jonas Lund is displayed on screens in the windows of The Flannels Group department store on Oxford Street in London on April 4. Photo: Bloomberg
Dennis Lee
There is a saying that if one day you walk out the front door and everybody in the world seems crazy, perhaps you are the crazy one. That is how I have felt lately to some degree as people are bidding top dollar for digital collectibles and joining virtual memberships to buy ape icons. I wonder if I am missing out.
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That was until Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey’s first tweet went up for auction in April. After being bought by crypto entrepreneur Sina Estavi as an NTF (non-fungible token) for US$2.9 million last year, the highest bid was US$280, overpriced by any measure for something that carried no substance at all.

NFTs are an invention using blockchain technology to store data on a digital ledger so it can be exchanged online with credibility and a guarantee of scarcity. For a long time, digital data could easily be replicated and forged without authentication. Finally, the world found a way to move digital assets with security and proof of ownership.

Nowadays, if you are not talking about NFTs, it seems like you’re not at the forefront of technology and innovation. While we should catch up with the times and be open-minded about new ideas, we should also question the merits of innovation claims.

We do not want to be obsolete and fall behind on an epic paradigm shift in cultural and technological advancement. At the same time, we do not want to ride a bandwagon blindfolded without questioning the meaning of things.

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The applications for NFTs do not apply just to art but to any digital information. The NFT art world exploded after the record-breaking sale of Beeple’s Everydays – The First 5000 Days for US$69.3 million in March 2021. While NFT platforms created markets beyond the traditional hammers of Sotheby’s and Christie’s, they also democratised art production where anybody could upload their creations.
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