Daft Punk meets CryptoPunks as Novo faces up to NFTs
On one hand, Novo offers, Any kind of discussion is going to onboard more people, and having a discussion negative or positive will drive conversation and allow people to come to their own conclusions. Ninety-eight percent of the people who read an article about NFTs have no clue what an NFT is. If my glass is always half full, their glass is empty. I want to fill it. So, Im always happy people are talking.
On the other hand, Novo explains, he chafes at two conceptions: that the NFT movement is composed of a bunch of crypto bros and that it is about making a quick buck.
When I showed up in New York for NFT.NYC, I had hundreds of people I was expecting to interact with who Id never seen before. Maybe I had tweeted with them, or had them on my Restream show where they had an AR filter on.
Honestly, I was stunned by the diversity. Im posing for all of these pictures, and its such a mix of gender, of ages, of cultures. And Im realizing, This community is everyone now, and everyone is bringing their unique aspect to it.
Crypto millionaire
The second conception is a little more tricky for Novo to tackle. After all, he is near the head of the line of NFT early adopters who have made real money.
One day, someone contacted Novo on Discord, asking if hed be willing to sell the Pranksy Hoodie. Novo keeps the buyer anonymous, but not the offer: 350 Ether.
Both NFTs and cryptocurrency had recently skyrocketed in value.
Novo was being offered the equivalent of $1.07 million for his Hoodie.
I had already realized I was going to have to sell some of my NFTs just to cover taxes, Novo admits. And, um… thats a lot of money there. He made the sale.
Heres what I dont like, Novo quickly continues. Any time I tell this story to anyone who isnt already in on NFTs, at this point I feel like Im damned if I do, damned if I dont.
Novo is referring to what he did, or rather, what he didnt do with his million-dollar windfall in cryptocurrency. He didnt cash out not most of it, anyway. He almost immediately reinvested in another Hoodie of lesser value that he felt he could get at a bargain price.
So, lets think about this, Novo levels. If I put my money back into our community because I see value, but mainly because I believe in the power of this movement, then Im an idiot because this is all a big bubble that is going to collapse, according to people who arent actually a part of this. But if I do cash out, then Im just another bro whos only in it for the money. Im going to be stereotyped either way.
I just have to believe, Novo finishes. Stories like this are going to make more people really see whats going on, and those people are going to get it, and thats going to grow our community.
Explaining whats going on, by the way, is now effectively Novos full-time job.
Earlier this year, Novo finally reached a crossroads. He had received offers to work full-time in the NFT space, and he sat down with his wife to discuss a career change. Fortunately, his wife an advertising executive believes in the power of NFTs as a new force in both technology and the marketplace. She encouraged him to make the switch.
Today, Novo is, for lack of a better term, an ideas man.
Its calls, he laughs. Lots and lots of calls but fun calls!
The business of NFTs
NFTs, Novo explains, are a space that the business world wants in on but doesnt fully understand. Novo often helps businesses find pathways to meaningful NFT involvement. One day, he might be connecting a blue-blood corporation with a promising digital artist. Another day, he might help a major hotel chain understand just what is possible in terms of a Metaverse-themed resort.
Novo believes that anyone from a major corporation to a struggling artist who treats NFTs not as a novelty but as a vehicle to truly add something to the NFT community will be rewarded with brand loyalty. Some producers or collectors will strike it rich, but the space itself will be transformational an entirely new landscape in which all people can interact, gather and, yes, profit.
This, of course, is the kind of rose-colored premonition you might expect from someone who regularly sits in boardrooms while wearing an NFT on his face.
Yeah, Novo admits. Im a true believer. But I dont think its just me. I think the evidence is right there for anyone who actually looks.
Novo mentions a podcast he listened to recently. The same reporter who interviewed me at NFT.NYC was on it. He said that NFT.NYC was celebrities, scene people, hackers, artists, venture capitalists, libertarians and more, all mixing together. He said it was really weird. Sorry, but that doesnt sound like weird to me.
That sounds, Novo opines with typical optimism, like everyone.
