by Lydia Ludmila 
Bored Ape Yacht Club dominates the conversation in NFTs often, and that didn’t change this week with the release of the project’s first ever token, ApeCoin. Meanwhile, Zuckerberg releases a quick forward-looking statement around NFTs on Instagram, and YouTube sensation Dr. Disrespect is bringing NFTs to gaming.
We’re here with another episode of the Nutshell, where we recap all of the week’s major activity in the NFT space. Let’s take a look at the past week’s worth of action.
This Week’s Non-Fungible Token News
The Impact Of ApeCoin
Easily the most talked-about topic in the NFT space this week? ApeCoin. The new, first-ever token for Bored Ape Yacht Club is definitely in the books for one of the most notable airdrops in NFT history thus far. In a matter of days, the token surged to be within the top 100 market cap.
ApeCoin in the NFT community has (outside of BAYC holders) been met with a bit of mixed reviews. We’ll see how it shakes out for APE token holders as things mature.
Coinbase Wallet Adds Support For Solana NFTs
Coinbase Wallet now offers support for Solana NFTs this week, as the power-player exchange leaves NFT fans waiting with baited breath around the company’s upcoming NFT marketplace. Coinbase has said that more is to come with regards to Solana integration, with more dApp integration expected to follow.
The news comes as Adobe product Behance implemented support for Solana NFTs.
Spotify Enters The Rumor Mill
Spotify entered the NFT rumor mill this week, as the streaming music service firm posted new job listings that allude to potential NFT-conducive behavior. According to reports, Spotify is set to unleash NFT support, which could bolster artist earnings – a major point of criticism around Spotify’s business model. NFTs in music have been largely untapped, with several projects and platforms taking direct action in the space – but none that have reached the masses at a scale like other NFTs.
About crypto in general, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has said:
That can open up enormous open doors where out of nowhere, a client in Japan could pay a maker in Argentina. What’s more, that opens up tremendous open doors for how we can advance our main goal.
Is Spotify GMI?
Polygon has continued to make a push in gaming and NFTs, and that’s exhibited this week as YouTube streamer Dr. Disrespect has selected Polygon (MATIC) as his blockchain of choice for new gaming-integrated NFTs. | Source: MATIC-USD on TradingView.com
Zuckerberg: NFTs On The Way To Instagram In The “Near Future”
At SXSW in Austin, Texas this week, there was plenty of NFT activity. NFT project ‘Doodles’ made a splash, and arguably dominated the NFT headlines; but on the more corporate end of the spectrum, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took over a day’s worth of NFT chatter after stating the following when asked about the future of NFTs on Meta-owned platform, Instagram:
“We’re working on bringing NFTs to Instagram in the near term… I’m not ready to kind of announce exactly what that’s going to be today. But over the next several months, the ability to bring some of your NFTs in, hopefully over time be able to mint things within that environment.”
Meta, formerly Facebook, has of course taken numerous of attempts towards building crypto-friendly products, with limited success thus far. The company’s history around blockchain technology leaves many skeptical that Instagram will implement them in a forward-thinking fashion.
YouTuber Dr. Disrespect Launching NFT Game Built On Polygon
Dr. Disrespect is known for his unique personality, quiet but controversial departure from Twitch, and now… NFT gaming. The now YouTube sensation is launching 10,000 NFTs tied to his gaming development company Midnight Society.
According to our report this week, NFT holders will get early entry to game builds, a uniquely generated “VisorCortex” helmet design, studio events access, and voting rights on game features. The NFTs will be built on the Polygon blockchain.
The gaming and esports industry has been by and large reluctant to embrace NFTs, despite some seemingly offering a natural fit. Adoption will clearly be a tough nut to crack, no pun intended – but if any personality is fitting to build inroads, it’s arguably Dr. Disrespect.
