📜 NFT History Timeline
From the first experimental tokens to the mainstream boom — trace the evolution of digital collectibles.
Before Ethereum, there were colored coins on Bitcoin — experimental attempts to represent assets on-chain. These laid the conceptual groundwork but never gained traction.
Ethereum went live in 2015, enabling smart contracts. Early projects like Counterparty experimented with digital collectibles on the Bitcoin sidechain.
Larva Labs released CryptoPunks — 10,000 algorithmically generated punk images. They became the first "profile picture" NFT collection and remain iconic.
CryptoKitties launched in late 2017 and went viral — so viral that it clogged the Ethereum network. The first example of an NFT causing congestion.
After the 2017 bubble popped, the space went quiet. OpenSea emerged as the dominant marketplace. NBA Top Shot (Flow blockchain) started building in 2019, launching in 2020.
NFTs went mainstream. Bored Ape Yacht Club launched in April and became the defining PFP collection. Beeple sold a digital artwork for $69 million at Christie's. Total market cap exploded into the billions.
Market cooled from 2021 highs. Blue-chip collections held value better than newer mints. The merge happened — Ethereum switched to proof-of-stake. STEPN popularized move-to-earn.
Ordinals launched on Bitcoin — inscribing data directly on satoshis. This sparked a new wave of Bitcoin-native digital art and collectibles, bringing NFT culture to the largest crypto network.
Major brands launched NFT collections (Nike, Starbucks, Adidas). Ethereum scaling improved with L2 adoption. Mobile-first NFT experiences emerged. The space matured — less speculation, more utility.