An intriguing turn of events has recently skyrocketed the fame of NFTs. For instance, several companies and big shots in the crypto industry have used NFTs to mitigate the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war. Another NFT-related event that went viral lately was the release of the We’re All Gonna Make It (WAGMI) song. Unless you live in a cave, you would already have the voice of Randi Zuckerberg playing in your mind just by reading the title. The work of the Facebook creator’s sister aimed to educate people about NFTs.
These events, among others, have casually brought up the topic of NFTs at dinner tables. Needless to say, they’ve fanned the flames of the growing NFT mania. This means that with NFTs gaining a lot of traction, NFT companies have also earned more attention. Whether you’re here simply because you’re curious, or because you have an investor’s mind, you can have a few takeaways.
Sit tight as you learn about five of the biggest NFT companies this year.
So, get your pen at the ready. Let’s talk about some of the coolest NFT companies you might hear a lot more about this year.
But, wait… what are NFT companies?
Many of those in the NFT space learned about NFT companies through blockchain games. These include the likes of Axie Infinity, Gods Unchained, Pegaxy, and Thetan Arena. There are also NFT companies that focus on NFT art collections and even real-world assets.
They do a lot more than simply create NFTs and build NFT projects. They also work together with other NFT companies to further develop the next-gen digital space, i.e., Web3. We can talk about that on another day. The point here is that these NFT companies exist to help expand the metaverse.
5 NFT companies worth looking into this year
Founded in 2009, Enjin is a Singapore-based tech company that expanded immensely over the years.
Enjin
Enjin offers an entire ecosystem of products and solutions that make NFTs easier to use. The company is catering to three major classes: individuals, businesses, and developers.
For instance, Enjin offers individuals the Enjin wallet. It’s a blockchain and crypto wallet that lives on your phone, whether you’re on Android or iOS. Using the wallet helps you manage your NFTs and crypto assets easily.
Meanwhile, Enjin has also built business solutions using blockchain technology. With Enjin’s software, founders can use NFTs to grow their businesses. They can work with Enjin to create, manage, and monetize NFTs that represent their brand.
Moreover, Enjin loves making life easier for developers. The company provides development tools that help create NFT-powered projects. These tools don’t even require previous experience in blockchain coding.
Gala Music, like Gala Games, also operates on decentralized “Nodes.” Image Credit: Gala Games
Gala (Gala Games and Gala Music)
This company started off with Gala Games. It aimed to create blockchain games people actually love to play. Their “fun first” motto makes their games attractive even to newbies. They’ve also mastered the promise of making players the true owners of whatever they win in-game.
Because they were true to their word, Gala Games grew to cater to more and more fans. Soon enough, Gala expanded to launch Gala Music. The music NFT platform welcomes artists and fandoms alike. At Gala Music, singers or bands can drop NFT music tracks. Fans can purchase these music NFTs and get real-world rewards from the artist.
Both Gala Games and Gala Music operate on decentralized “Nodes.” When you purchase a Node software license, you’re helping the entire Gala network run. You’re essentially hosting music or a game on your node. By having a node, you also open yourself to rewards, such as Gala Music Tokens.
The minimalistic updated logo of Larva Labs. Image Credit: Larva Labs
Larva Labs
Larva Labs is a mobile software company based in New York City. I was founded in 2005 by John Watkinson and Matt. This company mainly develops applications for iOS and Android devices. It may be doing great in the app department, but the company is much more notable for its NFT projects.
These include the OG NFT profile picture (PFP) collection on Ethereum, CryptoPunks. This project has yielded more than $1.75 billion worth of trading volume to date. The other NFT projects on the list are also impressive by quality and popularity. We’re talking about Meebits, an NFT collection of unique 3D characters, and Autoglyphs, the first on-chain generative art.
The two founders have had long-lasting client relationships with some of the best companies in the world such as Google and Microsoft. With their projects quickly soaring out from the shelves, there’s so much more we can expect from this company moving forward.
Yuga Labs has generated more than $1 billion in total sales with Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) alone.
Yuga Labs
Next on the list is Yuga Labs – the creator of CryptoPunks’ mortal nemesis, Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC). Well, sort of. CryptoPunks may be older than BAYC, but it still butts heads with the Ape NFT art collection until now. They frequently flip each other’s floor prices.
Anyway, Yuga Labs also owns another set of NFTs called Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC). It’s a twist to BAYC. MAYC features 20,000 Mutant Apes created by exposing a vial of Mutant Serum to a Bored Ape. By the same token, it has a collection of companion NFTs, the Bored Ape Kennel Club. All three NFT collections sit on the Ethereum blockchain.
As it was only founded in 2021, Yuga Labs is relatively new. On that account, it’s understandable how the company only has the three NFT collections on its current portfolio. But if (or when) they create another collection of NFTs, you’re sure to catch the news first by following us or subscribing to our newsletter.
Cool Cats is a collection of 9,999 randomly generated NFTs inspired by… you guessed it—cats! Image Credit: Cool Cats
Cool Cats
Founded by 4 crypto nerds, Cool Cats is a gift to cat lovers and NFT geeks alike. What started as an NFT cartoon cat collection is gradually evolving into Cooltopia. It’s a gamified ecosystem around everything Cool Cats. Also, Cooltopia includes how the cute NFT cats might be able to interact and have use cases in the future.
Whether it’s a good investment or not, Cool Cats execs say that’s for you to decide. Just among the greatest things about Cool Cats is how they’re rewarding their community. If anyone comes up with a cool idea to make Cool Cats even cooler, they’ll receive incentives. Cool Cats was also able to collab with TIME magazine for a limited edition drop in 2021.
A future for the nifty
The NFT industry has seen unprecedented growth since last year. Today, NFTs continue to inspire applications, such as in games, music, business, and real-world transactions. With the metaverse evolving rapidly, how many more brilliant NFT companies do you think will sprout?
