[mrisse]

I really enjoyed this article and appreciated the author's sober take. That said I'm a little more optimistic about Web3.

While NFTs can be confusing, over-hyped, or even fraudulent it is clear that they give artists new power. The power to create a scarce resource, prove that they created it, and sell it for substantially more than they could could otherwise sell electronic collectibles. How much of this is due to hype and how much is due to the ability to record and validate the "deed" to the NFT on the blockchain? I think that's an open question that will be more clear over time.

The author also understates the importance of DAOs and smart contracts imo. The real power of a DAOs or smart contracts is not in replacing financial instruments, but in replacing legal ones. I think in a short amount of time it will not be unusual to see wills executed via smart contracts.

[dustintrex]

But how exactly do they "prove they created it"? The art itself is not stored in the blockchain, just a pointer to it (NFT), which means anybody can create that pointer.

This is exactly the same fundamental oracle problem as that discussed in the article: trustlessness etc applies only within the sandbox, not to anything outside it.

[mrisse]

The author could share their public key. It's awkward today, but I suspect services will arise to make signing and verification of NFTs more user-friendly for artists and fans alike.

[sorum]

If you want an endless supply of examples of these scams, just follow https://twitter.com/NFTtheft