Author: Yinan
A Brief History of Pudgy Penguins
Pudgy Penguins is an iconic NFT project that was released on the Ethereum network in July 2021, with a total of 8,888 unique cartoon penguin NFTs, each with random features generated by up to 150 hand-drawn components. These penguins are different because they can have up to 5 randomly generated unique features, including special backgrounds, body shapes, shirts, and accessories. With its unique art style and community power, Pudgy Penguins quickly became one of the stars in the NFT craze.
In the early days of the project, Pudgy Penguins was launched in July 2021 by X user ColeThereum and anonymous users Mr. Tubby, Mickyj, and Jonah. But as it developed, governance issues in the project led to a crisis of trust. The initial founders were allegedly suspected of stealing funds allocated for project development. Doubts about the integrity of the project founders have seriously affected the value of Pudgy Penguins.
In early 2022, the NFT community pushed for a change of team, and community member Luca Netz took over the project for 750ETH and served as CEO, giving Pudgy Penguins a new direction. The new team includes Chief Marketing Officer Nicholas Ravid, Chief Technology Officer Lorenzo Melendez, Chief Creative Officer Peter Lobanov, and Chief Operating Officer Dr. Kaizu. The new team is committed to building it into a global brand, focusing on IP development and cross-field collaborations such as toys, animation, and metaverse projects.
Pudgy Penguins Ecosystem
Pudgy Penguins' brand expansion strategy revolves around digital IP and achieves diversified development through cross-domain integration. The project is not limited to the NFT market, but also extends the brand in multiple fields.
Pudgy Toys
Pudgy Penguins launched the physical toy series Pudgy Toys, which is the first commercial product directly authorized by the community. It was released on May 18, 2023 as an extension of NFT for children and collectors. Pudgy Toys is not only extremely cute, but also connected to the virtual world of Pudgy World through a QR code. This innovation enhances the interactivity of toys with the digital world and provides users with a richer experience. Pudgy Toy They are available on Amazon, Walmart stores or Pudgy Penguin official website.
Pudgy World
Pudgy World is the metaverse world launched by Pudgy Penguins on zkSync, providing holders with a personalized interactive experience.
There is a QR code on the Pudgy Toy, which can be scanned to enter Pudgy World, where you can explore the virtual penguin world, including playing mini games, building your own igloo, etc. The launch of this virtual world not only enhances the cohesion of the community, but also makes Pudgy Penguins an important bridge for exploring the web3 world in the Web2 world.
Pudgy Penguins NFT
Pudgy Penguins NFT includes Pudgy Penguins and the derivative NFT series Lil Pudgy and Pudgy Rods.
Derivative NFT Series
Lil Pudgy
Lil Pudgy is a collection of 22,222 NFTs launched in December 2021 and minted on the Ethereum blockchain. Pudgy Penguin holders received a free airdrop of these NFTs, and the rest were sold through a public sale.
Pudgy Rods
Pudgy Rods, also known as "rogs" (formerly known as "Pudgy Presents"), were released on August 30, 2021 by the original Pudgy Penguins team as a free NFT, one per Pudgy Penguin. Pudgy Rods is an Easter egg wrapped in a red ribbon. On Christmas Day, the egg was finally revealed: it contained a fishing rod.
$Pengu Token
Founder Luca announced on Twitter on December 6, announcing the official launch of Pudgy Penguins' official coin $PENGU token, which will be issued on the Solana chain.
Total supply: 88,888,888,888 (88.89 billion pieces), initial circulation is 62,415,951,646 pieces, the specific chip structure is as follows:
Public goods: 4%
Proliferation: 4%
Liquidity: 12.35%
Pudgy community: 25.9%
Other communities: 24.12%
FTT holders: 0.35%
Current and future team: 17.8%
Company: 11.48% (one-year cliff, three-year linear)
Airdrop
On December 16, Binance announced that the Binance Holder Airdrop has now launched the 5th project Pudgy Penguins (PENGU), and will list $PENGU at 22:00 on December 17, 2024 (Eastern Time 8), and BNB holders account for 3% of the circulation.
The reason why Pengu has attracted widespread attention is not only due to its listing on Binance, but also due to its wide coverage of short positions. 25.9% of the total PENGU tokens will be distributed to members of the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem through airdrops, and 24.12% will be distributed to "other communities", including active addresses on Solana and active addresses on ETH. At that time, airdrops will be made to eligible participants, and eligible participants will have 88 days to claim them.
The picture shows Foresight News. Alex Liu sorted out the number of airdrops corresponding to each character from public information on the Internet. Among them, the NFT that can receive the most PENGU tokens is not the fat penguin, but the rarest Pudgy Rods.
Pudgy Penguins success factors
Brand and IP construction
Pudgy Penguins has won the resonance of young people and users of different ages through cute and cute characters. CEO Luca Netz emphasized that brand and marketing are the core driving forces. The launch of physical toys also makes the virtual IP more three-dimensional. Within seven months, the sales of physical toys exceeded 750,000.
Innovative marketing
Billions of exposures per month: 13.8 billion views of dynamic GIFs, more than 1.23 million Instagram fans, and more than 10 million TikTok views. In addition, offline events such as Art Basel in Miami also boost brand influence.
IP licensing and sharing
Pudgy Penguins recently paid millions of dollars in royalties to NFT holders and launched the on-chain IP licensing platform OverpassIP, planning to create global brands like Hello Kitty and Pokemon.
Gamification and digital experience
In 2024, the Pudgy World on-chain open world game will be launched, supported by zkSync, combined with physical toy QR codes to achieve a closed-loop experience of digital and reality.
Pudgy Penguins's subsequent route
Pudgy Penguins will release its own public chain Abstract and incubator plan.
Abstract is a Layer 2 built using Matter Labs' ZK Stack and EigenLayer's data availability layer EigenDA, making the development process of decentralized applications easier, cheaper and safer. In addition to building this chain, Pudgy Penguins also plans to establish a developer incubator designed to help applications go from 0 to 1.
Abstract recently received an $11 million investment led by Peter Thiel's Founders Fund. This strategic financing round was led by Peter Thiel's Founders Fund, with other investors including Fenbushi Capital, 1kx, Everest Ventures Group and Selini Capital.
Pudgy Penguins has two missions: first, to become synonymous with penguins worldwide. When people think of penguins, they hope they will immediately think of Pudgy Penguins; second, to become the mascot and representative of cryptocurrency.
Summary
Since its launch, Pudgy Penguins has experienced the highlights and darkest moments of NFT. However, with its unique cartoon image, innovative brand building and strong community power, Pudgy Penguins has grown from an initially controversial NFT project to a globally influential brand in the blockchain and real world. NFT has also climbed from the lowest point of around 1ETH to the current floor of 17.9ETH, once becoming the most dazzling NFT this year.
Through the physicalization of toys, the launch of the virtual interactive platform Pudgy World, as well as innovative token economics and IP licensing, Pudgy Penguins has redefined the value and use scenarios of NFT. Driven by CEO Luca Netz, Pudgy Penguins' strategic development has demonstrated unprecedented innovation and diversity, from building the Abstract ecosystem to incubator programs to cross-platform IP licensing, each step has laid a solid foundation for the brand's future. By continuously deepening its brand mission, Pudgy Penguins has not only successfully attracted a wider audience, but also injected vitality into the entire Web3 ecosystem.
In the future, Pudgy Penguins' goal is not only to become a global penguin symbol, but also to become a representative mascot in the field of cryptocurrency. On the road of combining technology and culture, it has taken solid steps and contributed to the growth of web3 users.