Well, they don’t exactly NFTs. However, ‘TwelveFold’ is the name of Yuga Labs’ new venture to build creatives on Bitcoin. There is a lot of hype and interest in this unique corner of the NFT community, fueled by curiosity and fueled by everyday crypto degen. This leads to a feeling of ‘underground’ which will not last long – as the situation is often rushed in this place.
What are Bitcoin NFTs all about? First: they are ‘ordinal’, not NFT. And now that Yuga Labs is jumping in, we may find that this new interest from NFT collectors may not just be a fad.
What is Ordinal?
In early February, we took a deep dive into the rise of the Bitcoin ordinal. Ordinal is effectively the same as Bitcoin with NFT smart contracts, without smart contracts. That makes them more rigid and difficult to maneuver around the smart contract capabilities that most users are used to today.
Unlike ERC-based smart contract NFTs, Bitcoin ordinals are just satoshis tied to specific content. However, like the ‘traditional NFTs’ we know and love, ordinals are truly ‘on-chain.’
The interest in ordinal uniqueness and its relation to the best cryptocurrency of all time has engaged the NFT community. Now, it’s Yuga Labs’ turn to get involved – arguably the largest conglomerate in NFTs, Yuga Labs oversees flagship projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks, and will also expand its reach into Bitcoin today:
Introducing TwelveFold. A limited edition collection of 300 generative pieces, written in satoshi on the Bitcoin blockchain.https://t.co/aFWEIhzqcI pic.twitter.com/PjWABKKBr4
— Yuga Labs (@yugalabs) February 27, 2023
Yuga Labs is unleashing a project via ordinals - the 'NFTs of Bitcoin.' | Source: BTC-USD on TradingView.com
TwelveFold: Yuga Labs Has A Mix
Yuga Labs has launched the front page for TwelveFold and hinted that a 300-piece limited edition project in Bitcoin is on the way. The NFT (or in this case, the ordinal) will be a generative piece and will “represent a complete art project.” Yuga expressly stated that the TwelveFold project “will not have any other utility or connection with or be related to Yuga’s previous, ongoing, or future Ethereum-based projects.”
TwelveFold arguably adds a major layer of legitimacy to the already hyped corner of NFTs. Considering the hefty price tag of other NFT Yuga Labs collectibles, we wouldn’t be surprised to see TwelveFold command top dollar from some of NFT’s top spenders, considering the extremely limited supply compared to other Yuga mints to date.
Like the early days of NFT itself, the long game of Bitcoin’s ordinal inscription is almost as obscure and hazy. That’s probably part of the beauty behind this room – you can wake up one day and a whole new corner of the ecosystem comes alive again. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.