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Today marks an incredible day for New Tokyo as Yuga confirms its acquisition of WENEW Labs and the 10KTF NFT project. With speculation abound for months regarding the developing partnership between the two entities, tin-foilers can now close the case on what seemed to be pure hopium to many in disbelief. While this announcement clears some speculation, there are many questions that remain, including what this means for the future of the 10KTF ecosystem.
First, and foremost, it’s important to understand the team’s transition. Undoubtedly, they have been the heart and soul of producing the immersive experiences the community has enjoyed, and through this merger, 20 WENEW employees will join Yuga’s payroll, increasing the count to over 100 people worldwide. Co-Founder and CEO Michael Figge will join Yuga as its Chief Content Officer, while Beeple, also a Co-Founder, will join forces as an advisor. With Guy O’Seary already established as a “Minority Partner” and currently supporting as a Manager to Yuga Labs, what remains unknown is what role other key executives will hold, such as Co-Founder Tim Smith, as well as Saboteur, who serves as WENEW’s Head of Design. Presumably, they will be retaining their existing roles, but we look forward to further clarification. Regardless, it’s safe to say that Yuga Labs is inheriting a brilliant team of sophisticated talent that will maintain the ethos of New Tokyo in its new home at Yuga.
After successfully crafting unique items for the partnered collections the past year, what we do not know outside of massive speculation is what these items will mean to Yuga’s metaverse, Otherside. With the creation of Battle Town, WENEW’s gamified staking platform, these items have been traditionally used to accumulate points for “missions”, and depending on the mission type, more rewards could be earned based on community participation. While airdropped materials from 10KTF Stockroom were some of the early rewards received by participants, points earned have since become part of the project’s calculations for ApeCoin rewards. As we prepare for Otherside’s full release, questions still circulate as to whether these items will become wearables in the metaverse and whether Battle Town may see an interactive element of play-to-earn gaming. Such development would certainly lay the foundation for the massive gaming community to explore NFTs, but it would also pave the way for a much larger platform, such as championship tournaments with larger purse prizes in the form of ApeCoin.
Last, but not least, there is a need to recognize what this means for the immediate 10KTF community and the space as a whole, especially as the narrative of Web3 is portrayed as a crumbling industry to the outside world. For starters, knowing the level of detailed execution the WENEW team is capable of delivering between incredible story-telling and technological innovations, Yuga will become a much stronger entity in properly building the infrastructure Web3 needs for the masses to safely adopt. Additionally, Wagmi-san has consistently shown a purpose to connect communities together in crafting items for the partnered collections, and although this has been limited to partnered collections, when you consider Otherside’s ODK to allow for open-sourced development, it is not too far-fetched to think that a protocol might be developed for other NFT projects to utilize in crafting their collections. Finally, for our space as a whole, this should serve as a signal that the builders will not stop building no matter how bearish a market may seem, and no matter what your views may be on this merger, it seems that Season 2 of 10KTF may just be the beautiful beginning of something bigger than we can even imagine.
While the news outlets are buzzing about this release, to read the official press release, you can head over to Yuga Labs’ news section or check out Business Wire’s expanded coverage. On behalf of all of us at New Tokyo Rumors, welcome to all of our new frens if this is your first time learning about 10KTF.
