Cool Cats NFT mission is likely one of the most enjoyable (and well-liked) manufacturers within the NFT area. After it launched in July of 2021, the gathering shortly reached the #3 spot in relation to each reputation and gross sales quantity, in accordance with OpenSea’s rating charts. The NFT assortment in the end got here in simply behind the Bored Ape Yacht Membership (BAYC) and CryptoPunks. Though the Cool Cats NFTs have since slipped a bit decrease within the charts, the gathering tends to dependable hover within the high 20 rankings relating to generative avatar tasks.
Actually, the overall commerce quantity of Cool Cats is now approaching $300 million.
At present, the lovable blue cats even have a vibrant and energetic group. What’s extra, the staff behind the NFT assortment has made it clear that they’re on a mission to innovate and push the NFT area ahead. How? By video games, reside occasions, a singular voting system, and one ultra-secret mission.
The main points of that secret mission are, sadly, very sparse. However we’ve collected all the data that’s obtainable. Right here’s every thing we all know in regards to the mission and the place it’s heading.
Earlier than we start, what are Cool Cat NFTs?
Cool Cats is a group of 9,999 programmatically, randomly generated NFTs. Just like predecessors like CryptoPunks, every Cool Cat NFT is made up of quite a lot of distinctive traits. In the end, there are over 300,000 potential mixtures that encompass issues like distinctive our bodies, faces, facial hair, hats, glasses, clothes gadgets, and so forth.
In fact, not all Cool Cats are created equal. In reality, some are a lot cooler (i.e., rarer) than others.
About half of the Cool Cat NFTs have a primary diploma of “cool,” that means that they’re price three or 4 factors. As exhibited within the chart beneath, some Cats are “wild,” “elegant,” and even “unique.” Cool Cat NFTs with this label are price much more factors. Whereas this rating system is a callback to CryptoPunks and even CryptoSkulls, any Cool Cats group member will gladly inform you that every cat is a Cool Cat.
And who created Cool Cats?
The Cool Cats staff consists of 4 folks. There’s Tom Williamson (xtremetom), who’s the blockchain and sensible contract skilled. Rob Mehew (Lynqoid) is the net developer and supervisor. Evan Luza (ELU) is the artistic director. Lastly, the illustrator is Colin Egan (clon) also called The Catoonist.
In an interview with catster, Egan defined how the thought for the mission took place. “My complete life I’ve drawn cartoon characters, however the cats didn’t begin till highschool. […] Ultimately, I used to be often known as the man who drew cats — and that was once I began translating that into my cartoon drawings, which till then had been solely doodles for me,” he stated.
All Cool Cats are derived from “Blue Cat” the character Egan would attract highschool. In keeping with the Cool Cats web page on Medium, Colin “spent years perfecting the road weight, ear top, and whisker size of Blue Cat to lastly get him to its undeniably cool and cute ultimate type.”
The staff, who’re self-proclaimed “nerds who’re captivated with crypto, artwork, and makin’ cool stuff,” launched Cool Cats PFPs on July 1, 2021.
Why are Cool Cat NFTs so costly and well-liked?
Cool Cats adopted in shut proximity to the Bored Ape Yacht Membership. Whereas BAYC undoubtedly served because the catalyst for the profile-picture (PFP) NFT increase that occurred in the summertime of 2021, Cool Cats in no little half helped lead the all-out avatar bullrun.
Priced at 0.06 ETH every, which was about $150 on the time, Cool Cats PFPs first bought 300 NFTs. Then the staff lowered the value to simply 0.02 ETH per mint (about $50). It took about eight hours to promote out. Within the days following, the mission would start to blow up throughout the NFT ecosystem. The worth of the NFTs shortly rose to 0.66 ETH (about $1,000).
Why did it take off to such a level? Celebrities, principally.
Solely eight days after launch, Cool Cats obtained an enormous endorsement by the use of Mike Tyson. By altering his Twitter PFP to a Cool Cat, the boxing legend helped additional solidify each himself and Cool Cats as distinguished components of the NFT group. At present, notable Cool Cats homeowners embody actress Reese Witherspoon, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, and DJ Steve Aoki.
Early on, “we just like the Cats” turned the official slogan of Cool Cats. As buying and selling started to choose up and NFT fans began to turn into bullish (assured as a result of elements like rising costs and growing assist from celebrities) on the mission, the collective Cool Cats ethos of positivity and enthusiasm was shortly established. A group that’s centered on positivity is in the end one of many mission’s core choices.
And with most different PFP NFT tasks, Cool Cats turned all about group.
To increase a heat welcome to any particular person who joins the Cool Cats universe, the Cooltopia was opened. Cooltopia is, in brief, the whole Cool Cats ecosystem — the official Twitter, the Discord server, the Cool Store and market, and so forth. The creators principally took their total ecosystem and have tried to rework it right into a sort of gamified NFT expertise that connects all Cool Cat NFT homeowners. The founders defined their considering in a weblog publish, saying they wished to make “a spot the place having a Cool Cats NFT grants you evolving entry to video games, tokens, group occasions, collaborations, and extra.”
In these respect, proudly owning one of many hundreds of Cool Cats PFPs does include an array of incentives. Holders not solely obtain an unique position within the Discord, but additionally entry to airdrops, precedence minting for all subsequent Cool Cats endeavors, entry to on-line and reside Cool Cats occasions, and a non-exclusive license to the NFT they personal.
The Cool Cats website additionally explains that they return 20 % of all ETH raised to their group via raffles, contests, and extra. Primarily, Cool Cats desires to provide consumers a voice and an actual place of their group.
As licensing has been a steady topic of debate inside the NFT area, Cool Cats’ non-exclusive license helped circumvent the usual problems by granting its holders the ability to do something with their private Cool Cat NFTs that they please. On the identical time, the Cool Cats creators additionally reserve the identical proper and are ready to make use of any Cool Cat of their 10,000 NFT assortment for merch, advertising, and so on.
And in August of 2021, Cool Cats launched its first main partnership, flexing the liberty given to the mission builders and NFT holders by the use of the non-exclusive license. A limited-edition drop that includes 100 TIME-branded editions of Xtremetom, Lynoid, ELU, and clon’s signature cats, the collaboration got here alongside a meme competitors and began an upward pattern in Cool Cats secondary gross sales.
What are Cool Pets?
In September 2021, the Cool Cats ecosystem (AKA Cooltopia) completely exploded with the announcement of two issues: Cool Pets and the $MILK token. These two bulletins bolstered secondary gross sales even additional, sending the Cool Cats ground into the double digits for the primary time.
Cool Pets is a companion NFT collection to coincide with Cool Cats PFPs. As companion collections just like the Bored Ape Kennel Membership, KingFrogs, Thingies, and extra have helped well-liked tasks capitalize on demand and additional broaden their collector base, Cool Cats appears to be entering into an analogous course with their Pets.
Cool Pets options 19,999 NFTs with half of the provision reserved for Cool Cats holders and the opposite half reserved for public sale. All Pets begin as an Egg and evolve into their ultimate type, which represents one among 4 parts: Grass, Hearth, Water, or Air. The meals and gadgets given to an Egg decide the creature’s look and ingredient.
Objects come from loot crates that may be bought utilizing $MILK from the Cool Cats Market. You may earn $MILK by doing every day quests together with your Cool Pet. There are greater than 100 potential quests, together with favorites reminiscent of Save the Forest, Go Greet the Frogs, Sniff for Hazard and Get to Know the Townsfolk, with extra quests to return. Should you’re a Cool Cat holder, you too can earn $MILK every day simply by claiming it.
What’s the $MILK token?
$MILK is the social token inside the Cool Cats ecosystem. $MILK is required for all kinds of issues together with shopping for Pet chests, Battle chests, Housing chests, occurring Quests, and future gamification.
The announcement of $MILK additionally led to a brand new pattern inside the Cool Cats group: the milk chug. In celebration of the rising ground and the token information, community members and Cool Cats’ developers alike started to publish movies of themselves downing something from a small glass to a full gallon of milk.
Cool Cats statistics
As of March 2022, Cool Cats is the eleventh largest NFT mission when it comes to gross sales. They’ve recorded $290.44 million in all-time gross sales amongst 11,353 merchants and 35,939 gross sales. Presently, the Cool Cats ground value is 8.5 ether or $25,900 for the most affordable NFT. Metrics additional present that Cool Cats has an general market capitalization of round $261 million.
We’ll replace this part occasionally, so people can see a report of the value modifications.
The way to purchase Cool Cats NFTs
Cool Cats can at the moment solely be bought on secondary markets reminiscent of OpenSea. As of March 2022, the ground value for a Cool Cat is 7.88 ETH (roughly $27,000 USD).
The way forward for Cool Cats
In March 2021, the creators of Cool Cats signed with CAA, a number one expertise company in Los Angeles, California. In keeping with a press launch, “the company will establish and create alternatives for Cool Cats characters throughout an array of areas, together with licensing and merchandising, animated content material, model partnerships, reside occasions, publishing, and extra.”
Cool Cats and Cool Pets are simply the primary items of the large Cooltopia ecosystem the founders have deliberate. Signing on with CAA will solely broaden the alternatives for development.
“Individuals’s notion of Cool Cats solely exists within the NFT capability proper now, however that’s actually simply our launching platform for the model as an entire, so we intend to take it in nearly each avenue that we presumably can,” co-founder Luza informed The Hollywood Reporter.
And what about that super-secret mission? Apart from a observe on the official roadmap, no particulars have been made obtainable.
Editor’s Word: At time of publication, members of the nft now workers are holders of Cool Cats NFTs.
Source: NFT Now