#194 - Nike’s first-ever NFT sneaker drop

GM and welcome to Decentra Daily.

We're the web3 newsletter that's back with more NFT, crypto, and AI stories to blow your puny minds!

Today,

1. Nike drops its "first" digital shoe collection

2. An Azuki party in Las Vegas

3. J1mmy.eth sells BAYC grails & AI Drake does numbers on Spotify

Plus, all the web3 headlines, memes, and Tweets of the day.

D-Daily takeaway 🥡BAYC struggles to shrug off floored grail sales, while CryptoPunks continue to slide.

What's this? 🤔Our floor price index tracks the biggest, most influential pfp projects, art collections, and gaming assets.

OF1 – the first Nike digital sneakers are hitting the market

Thanks to Nike's partnership with RTFKT, it feels like the sports brand has been in the NFT game for years.

But, while Cryptokicks do heavily feature Nike IP, the company itself has yet to launch an independent project or collection.

Until now: here's Our Force 1 – digital, affordable versions of Air Force low-tops

OF1 wearables mark the first assets in Nike's Polygon-based ecosystem, .SWOOSH.

That platform launched last November, with all the usual spiel about "community," "co-creation," and "collaboration."

It's currently being built out with a creator tool for user-made "virtual creations," plus a marketplace and gallery.

So what do these OF1s look like?

While the artwork hasn't been fully revealed, we know that each pair of OF1s will reference or remix iconic editions of Nike's most famous sneaker franchise.

There'll be two main collection categories – Classic Remix and New Wave. Classic OF1s are based on Air Force designs from 1982 to 2006, while New Waves reference more recent sneaker designs.

The deets

• OF1 designs include "familiar faves, cult classics, and originals"

• 4 designs are by .Swoosh community members

• There are random grails and unique pairs in both categories

• OF1s will cost $19.82

• Fiat payment (no crypto)

• NFTs will come with 3D files for potential metaverse/gaming imports

Nike is right now randomly airdropping early access mint passes to SWOOSH members.

The passes take the form of virtual AF1 posters, so be on lookout for those on Twitter.

Early access mints are scheduled for May 8th, while the wider community gets access on May 10th.

The free-to-join SWOOSH platform is reportedly over 300K members strong.

So, if Nike is saying that "all members have a chance to buy an OF1 box," it could mean a lot of OF1s hitting your feed next month.

Notable Tweets ✅

On the web3 wire

House committee to discuss stablecoin legislation this Wednesday 🗣️You can watch live as politicians hear a 70-page bill on the potential impact of stablecoins and how they might be legislated.

X.AI is the name of Elon Musk's new AI company 🤖Despite signing a petition to put a moratorium on advanced AI development, Musk has incorporated a new company, with a name that suggests it will be the AI arm of his X ecosystem.

NFT NYC proves that web3 communities are still alive and active 🗽Decrypt's EIC recaps what went down at NFT NYC for those who couldn't make it.

An Azuki party in Vegas

While CryptoPunks struggle to cope with airdrop farmers, and BAYC is hurt by longtime holders selling at below-market prices, one older blue-chip NFT collection is riding high...

In the past 30 days, Azuki has seen its floor rise ~3 ETH, its daily avg volume slowly increase, and several of the collection's biggest ever sales:

How come? Well, you could attribute this positive activity to a few things:

• New deals and partnerships for Azuki's spinoff collection, Beanz

• Azuki benefiting from other blue-chip collections faltering

• Whales taking notice and fortifying their positions

Here's another reason to feel bullish if you hold Azuki assets – they're having a big party!

An exclusive Azuki event will be held in June in Las Vegas and is called Follow The Rabbit

While Azuki holders have guest list priority, anyone can register to attend. Just sign up before April 24th.

Who/what is White Rabbit? 🐇🐇🐇

According to some early tweets from the Azuki community, White Rabbit refers to Azuki #147, who also goes by the name Yuki.

Event FAQ:

• Location: Hakkasan Nightclub at MGM Grand Las Vegas

• Date: June 23, 10pm - 2am.

• Age restriction: 21+.

• Price: Free (with $100 deposit)

• Register: here until 14:00 PT on 4/24

Another AI picture wins a traditional art competition

Back in September last year, artist Jason Allen stirred controversy when they submitted this AI-generated image to Colorado State Fair’s annual art competition, and took home first prize:

The competition was open to all types of digital art, and Allen disclosed that the image was made using the AI generator, Midjourney.

But that didn't stop an avalanche of Twitter hatred, which only intensified when an NYT article claimed that the competition's judges "did not know that Midjourney was an AI program..."

Now, another AI image has claimed first place in a traditional art competition.

Here it is. The Electrician, by Boris Eldagsen:

It's ok, right? Pretty nice ...not exactly the most mind-blowing piece of art I've ever seen – AI or otherwise.

Whether or not you rate the image, however, this competition winner has generated even more unrest than Allen's AI painting.

That's because the World Photography Organization chose Eldagsen's piece as one of the winners in its 2023 Sony World Photography Awards

The Electrician won in the Open, Creative category, earning Eldagsen $5,000 and some sweet Sony photography equipment.

Initially, it seemed like Eldagsen was happy to accept the award.

But, after the story blew up, Eldagsen began claiming that he only entered the competition to spark debate about AI art.

Now, the competition organizers and Eldagsen are in the middle of a heated argument - and The Electrician has been removed from the competition website.

Check out this article from art news site PetaPixel for a full review of what went down.

Thoughts:

• AI images aren't photography

...But with image editing software (and even some cameras) now containing AI-powered features, how is it possible to draw a line between the two mediums?

• This will happen again

Because it seems like the judges of these competitions are still learning how to Facetime their kids, rather than exploring the new frontier of digital art.

• I mean, how out of touch are these judges?

Surely anyone with even a passing interest in AI could immediately tell the pics above are AI-generated – am I wrong? 😂

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Meme of the day

Tomorrow: Watch the SEC's Gary Gensler squirm 👋

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