Sale of non-fungible tokens or NFTs, reached $25 billion in 2021, showing that the sector is one of the most sought-after crypto markets. Arts NFTs in particular made a big impact last year after Christie’s coverage ended $93 million in non-fungible token sales during its fourth annual Art+Tech Summit, held last August.
While notable, much of the crypto art scene seems to be dominated by cartoons and memes, as projects like CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club have done brought into focus. Although these projects are among the most successful to date, a new subset of NFTs is emerging, based on advanced technologies and human imagination.
AI generative NFTs are becoming a new genre of art
Known as “AI-generative NFTs,” these non-fungible tokens are gaining popularity in the arts community, along with those interested in new technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and the metaverse. To create AI generative NFTs one would typically use Generative Adversarial Networks or GANs. These are algorithms that use computers to use data to train models to create machine-made images that resemble art.
Claire Silver, an AI collaborative artist, told Cointelegraph that AI generative NFT art is a relatively new genre, noting that the rationale is that art is created along with a semblance of artificial intelligence like GAN:
“There are code-heavy options and completely code-free tools that anyone can work with. I use the latter in my work. Being able to work with an AI to bring your ideas to life is an experience like no other, it boosts creativity in a way that feels like freedom, a kind of game you’ve played since childhood have not experienced more.”
To create AI generative NFTs, Silver explained that she uses a text-to-art generator called “Eponym”. Developed by AI-generated art company Art AI, the eponym tool allows users to create art based on a text of their choice and then imprint these creations directly on the largest NFT marketplace, OpenSea.
“Cassandra Ex Machina” Source: Claire Silver
Eyal Fisher, co-founder of Art AI, told Cointelegraph that Eponym makes it possible to turn any sentence into a unique NFT artwork that will be forever engraved on the Ethereum blockchain as a visual representation.
Fisher explained that Eponym is built on personalized generated art algorithms that allow people to create art by interacting with a computer. “Eponym is a collaborative NFT project. Users access it by coming to the website and typing any phrase or word in a text box. The AI then generates artwork based on the entered text.” Fisher added that each text input can only be generated once. “There’s only one eponym called ‘Bitcoin,'” he said.
$btc image produced by Eponym. Source: eponym
Although AI generative art is a fairly new concept, Fisher shared this first eponym project sold out overnight on OpenSea, making it one of the largest collaborative art projects created by 3,500 different artists. “This is an experiment in decentralizing art. People who own eponyms are creators of that art and want to curate it,” he said.
While Eponym allows users to create their own art NFTs, Metascapes is another project developed by three photographers who wanted to combine human expression with computer algorithms. Ryan Newburn, one of the photographers behind Metascapes, told Cointelegraph that the project consists of 3,333 rare AI-generated NFTs based on photos taken around the world. Like Eponym, Metascapes uses AI algorithms to create nature-inspired NFTs. According to Newburn, the first Metascapes collection will be minted later this month or early February.
“Ice Voyage” Source: Metascapes
The AI team behind Metascapes — known as Versus Labs — explained that the artworks in each collection are created using training data to recognize real-world images:
“We have images and captions for our photos called ‘training data.’ When it comes time to generate the output model, we’ll insert a label that tells the model what kind of images to output. For example, ice caves and volcanoes were two categories that the photographers have worked for in the past, but that wasn’t the bulk of the input data, so we wanted to make sure the output included examples of ice caves and volcanoes.”
Versus Labs added that Metascapes’ AI learns over time, noting that the generator that outputs data gets better over time because it uses two learning models simultaneously. “The generator initially outputs random noise and the discriminator model tells the generator how to improve the output so that it looks more like the training data. This cycle continues and ensures that both models improve over time.”
Iurie Belegurschi, another photographer behind Metascapes, told Cointelegraph that as photographers, the Metascapes team chose to work with AI to produce images because everything related to NFTs and Web3 is about machines, computers and code rotates:
“We decided to work with a machine to create an entirely new world in the metaverse. Everyone buys PFP avatars now, but in our case, people get a unique piece of land in the Metaverse.”
Impact of AI on artists and NFT collectors
Although AI-generated NFTs are still an emerging concept, this model has started to influence both artists and NFT collectors. For example, the digital artist known as “Kami was heretold Cointelegraph that working with AI has fundamentally changed the role of the human artist:
“Humans need the algorithm and the algorithm needs the human. For me, this new role involved collecting data, writing code, curating, inspiring to create a theme, and most importantly, “coaching” an algorithm. The process is dynamic and the result is collaborative.” 
“The Cartographer” Source: Kami was here
Regarding how generative art NFTs differ from other non-fungible tokens, Kami was Here explained that each result is completely unique as it was created from an algorithm. “Generative art explores the future of a society hardwired for human-computer interaction,” said the artist.
Additionally, Fisher pointed out that the accessibility and a newfound desire to own NFTs is a result of AI-generated imagery. “Many of our users are creating NFTs for the first time, while NFT collectors and buyers create their own creations. This is unusual as most people in our community are not professional artists.”
dr Alex Alter, lead AI scientist for Altered State Machine — a protocol that uses NFT intelligence to create intelligent AI agents — further told Cointelegraph that AI-generated NFTs not only look unique, but also have a deeper meaning to the individual convey abstract feeling . “These NFTs are really unique in the sense that there isn’t a single area in any of the AI works that has similar pixels. In the future, humans will also be able to create AI artworks through DAOs and chatbot technology. This is far more than what other NFTs can do today.”
“Singularity through AIIV” Source: Dr. Alex age
Can AI be trusted to create meaningful NFTs?
While the potential for AI-generative NFTs is evident, the question of whether one can rely on artificial intelligence to generate high-quality images based on text or photos remains an issue.
As such, Newburn mentioned that Metascapes carefully curates each of their collections. “Our AI team generated tens of thousands of images. Not all of these are exhibited in our mints. If we’re not happy with the category, we strategize and retest which categories work together. Our AI learned from multiple tests.”
It’s also important to note that there are different ways to generate AI-based NFTs. For example, Fisher mentioned that Eponym makes two versions of its generator publicly available, one on the company’s Discord channel that acts as a chatbot, and the other as a private link containing more complex algorithms capable of generating more advanced images create. Kami was Here further pointed out that some AI artworks may take only a few minutes to generate, while others may take longer:
“There are now free apps like Wombo that can easily generate images. It’s easy for humans to create. On the other hand, AI art can also take months to develop and train your algorithms, collect input data and pay for computing power. AI art can also be very resource intensive and personalized.”
Technology aside, AI generative NFTs are bound to be a disruptive trend in the future. according to dr Alter has already seen large volumes of AI-generated art on OpenSea, noting that the market will continue to grow this year. He mentioned that this will be partly due to the functionality of AI generative NFTs. “In the future, people will be able to own their own ‘AI artist’ NFT (AI that can produce art) or use a DAO AI to create art together with this AI artist.”
Additionally, the rise of the metaverse should spur the growth of AI-based NFTs. For example, Fisher noted that Eponym’s next project will include interactive virtual identities, where users can take their own portraits to create 3D avatars and animate them using artificial intelligence. “Our idea is to use AI that allows avatars to take different forms compatible in metaverse environments like sandbox. In February, the company will introduce more algorithms that will allow users to create personalized avatars.”
