Can AI Detect Stolen Art In NFTs?

AI is coming for the NFT space, in more ways than one. Find out more about the latest new potential application for AI in Web3.

TylerD

Apr 27, 2023

TylerD's Market Summary

GM!

Today's top news includes:

Stolen art detection with AI?
AB Curated fails to mint out
Art market decline
Doodles' Stoodio Launch

🤖AI and Stolen Art

Many in the NFT space have minted an exciting new project, just to find out days later that the artwork was stolen.

Soon, AI may be able to help us avoid that situation.

Enter visual data processing researcher Nick Chaplahin.

He has recently created a technology to automate image matching in NFTs.

And now he's executing an interesting experiment to test how well the market can detect uniqueness in NFT art.

The Details

Chaplahin is using AI to sell art.

A bit of a curveball, not going to lie.

Here's what we know:

His study involves using AI to generate images from various cultures and backgrounds with varying levels of uniqueness
He mints those AI-generated outputs as NFTs
He is auctioning them on OpenSea to determine how the market values them

The outcome of how the auctions will inform how well the market can detect duplicates and how it values uniqueness.

Unfortunately, none of his pieces seem to have any bids at the moment, so this experiment might not be a raging success.

A More Exciting Use Case

His experiment aside, Chaplahin's other goal is to create automatic detection of stolen images within NFTs.

That seems like a much better goal to pursue, and one the entire NFT space would benefit from.

Potential applications of that service:

Collectors (or even marketplaces) could scan every major new mint to determine its uniqueness
Artists could run broad scans across art platforms looking for ripoffs
Brands could execute scans to determine if their products or likeness are being represented without their consent

The list could go on.

AI is definitely coming for the NFT space, in many different ways.

Follow Lucky Trader's new AI account to stay up to date on all the latest

🖼 Art Blocks Curated Fails to Mint Out

The days of high-priced Dutch auctions and gas wars are seemingly behind us in the Art Blocks market, at least for the near future.

Yesterday's Curated drop "Still Moving" by Nathaniel Stern and Sasha Stiles failed to mint out before reaching its resting price of 0.2 ETH.

As of this morning, 267 of 400 have been minted.

I personally have not seen an Art Blocks Curated drop not mint out by resting price or within a few hours since spring of 2021, when AB was brand new and mints normally lasted hours or days.

Why It Matters

The pure flippers and speculators have likely left the Art Blocks market.

In past bull markets, any Curated drop would mint out.

Now it's mostly collectors left, and they did not love the art on this drop - thus choosing not to mint at a relatively high 0.2 ETH resting price.

Had the minimum price been set to 0.1 ETH or lower, this would have likely minted out.

So the other takeaway here is that future artists may adjust their Dutch auction pricing.

The Broader Art Blocks Market

Taking a quick look at notable floor prices for leading Curated drops - it doesn't look great.

Here's a rundown of the top Curated drop and their changes since January 1, 2023.

Fidenza: 89 ETH -> 56 ETH (-37%)
Ringers: 52.69 ETH -> 30 ETH (-43%)
Elevated Deconstructions: 65 ETH -> 16 ETH (-75%)
Gazers: 35 ETH -> 15 ETH (-57%)
Archetype: 32 ETH -> 13 ETH (-59%)
Unigrids: 16.5 ETH -> 10.42 ETH (-37%)
Squiggles: 15.55 ETH -> 9.42 ETH (-39%)
Subscapes: 9.46 ETH -> 4.99 ETH (-47%)

Not great.

But those numbers are certainly in line with the broader NFT market, so not a huge surprise.

Any silver linings?

Well, anecdotally, I've noticed some notable whales and collectors have started WETH bidding notable Art Blocks Curated collections in the past week.

They seem to think the bottom is nearing (of course, impossible to predict).

Hopefully, they are right.

🚚 What else is happening in NFTs?

Here is a list of other notable headlines from the day in NFTs:

Trading volume was at 13,306 ETH on Wednesday, down again on the day; OS Pro captured 7% share, with Blur holding 56%
Doodles is launching The Stoodio in beta on April 28, as the new home for Doodles experiences and a platform for creating custom Doodles
Cryptoon Goonz introduced BRED, a new rewards system for NFT holders residing on Polygon; the first claim window opens on April 27
Virtual One has created a new customizable avatar project in collab with Amber Vittoria and Terrell Jones, where every trait and accessory is an individual wearable

🌎 Around Crypto and Web3

A few other Crypto and Web3 headlines that caught my eye:

The crypto market fell/gained on Wednesday; BTC down 0.4% at $28,997; ETH -1.8% at $1,885
Phantom Wallet is moving beyond Solana, adding support for Ethereum and Polygon

🚀 NFT Total Volume

MAYC (1,617 ETH, 11.1 ETH Floor)
Azuki (1,390 ETH; 14.85 ETH)
Wrapped CryptoPunks (725 ETH, 48.2 ETH)
BAYC (722 ETH, 50.6 ETH)
Milady (450 ETH, 2.4 ETH)

📈 NFT Floor Price Increase

NFT Worlds (16%, 1.9 ETH Floor)
rektguy (15%, 0.59 ETH)
Killabits (11%, 1.04 ETH)
Clone X (10%, 2.94 ETH)
Oddities (9%, 0.32 ETH)

🗓 Upcoming NFT Mints and Reveals

Today is a big day in the art market.

First, Dave Krugman is dropping a 30-count edition on Escher called "Dark Gravity." Escher drops have been minting out pretty quickly, and this will be a solid test for the new platform.

The main drop of the day is Grant Yun's "Life In Japan 2," previewed extensively in Tuesday's post. Expect major demand and a near-instant mint out when it gets to public.

The wildcard of the day is the Moonbirds Diamond Exhibition - the NFTs from early minters should arrive today. The market reaction will be a big test for those Moonbirds holders who are "in it for the art."

GORJS DAO: Dream Vortex (TBD); 0.09 ETH
Escher Exclusives - "Dark Gravity" (12:00 p.m. ET); 0.3 ETH
Whispers In The Snow by iDerech x Premint Collector Pass (4:00 p.m. ET); 0.133
NBA Top Shot Redemptions window 1 closes (1:00 p.m. ET)
Grant Yun's "Life In Japan 2" (6:30 p.m. ET); $299
Moonbirds Diamond Exhibition drop (TBD)

Enjoy this write-up? Follow along with me on Twitter @tyler_did_it or reach out via email tyler.warner@luckytrader.com.

For all volume and floor price data, see Lucky Trader's Project Rankings page.

For all upcoming mints, see Lucky Trader's Project Schedule page.