Yumi and Toniq Labs Lead the Charge for NFT Innovation

Digital assets known as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) surged in popularity last year. These unique, cryptographic units can point to items that exist in cyberspace or in the physical world. NFTs are tradable, and they are most often used to signify and verify ownership of the items they represent. While the vast majority of NFT transactions currently occur on Ethereum, the Internet Computer is quickly becoming a hub for NFT innovations.

Unlike Ethereum, the Internet Computer has zero gas fees. The computational cost to validate transactions on the Internet Computer is negligible (0.0001 ICP). In contrast, back in May, people spent $183 million USD (64,700 ETH) on gas fees for Ethereum's Otherside NFT collection. Not only would those same 42,098 transactions have cost a mere $35.78 USD on the Internet Computer, but all digital assets would have been hosted entirely on the blockchain. Moreover, with reverse gas fees, developers, not users, assume minimal costs for NFT Dapps.

Two Major Innovative NFT Marketplaces

Let's look at the key players who are leading the charge for NFT innovation on the Internet Computer. They are Yumi and Toniq Labs.

Yumi

At only 7 months old, Yumi is already making waves. In our recent interview with Melissa Song, who heads business development and marketing, we learned about Yumi's plans to span multiple blockchains and claim a spot among the top NFT marketplaces. These are truly lofty goals, and thanks to the interoperability of the Internet Computer, they just might be achievable.  After all, after Bitcoin integration, Ethereum is next. Marketplaces hosted on the Internet Computer will have an extraordinary opportunity to tap into Ethereum collectors who want to avoid gas fees but continue to enjoy the benefits of their native blockchain.

Yumi boasts a team of 20 dedicated developers, marketers, writers, and others located across the globe. Back in August, the marketplace hosted the first worldwide art fair on the Internet Computer. Over 60 NFT collections are currently available on Yumi, including FACELESS from Sunny. Yumi is a great place to start for creators new to NFTs and recently debuted a new development section for artists interested in perhaps developing a piece or two to sell rather than a traditional collection.

Toniq Labs

Toniq Labs boasts Entrepot, the largest and oldest NFT marketplace on the Internet Computer. Those who have been around since Genesis will be quite familiar with classic collections like ICPunks, Poked Bots, and of course, Cronics, Toniq's very first NFT on the Internet Computer. With hundreds of collections, it's easy for art enthusiasts to spend days perusing Entrepot's offerings.

And don't let Entrepot's age and establishment status fool you - Stephen Andrews, Bob Bodily, Steve Erickson, Max Ogles, and Mac Yap are debuting new innovations almost daily. Plus, their marketplace is home to some of the most prominent creators to date on the Internet Computer.

The Future is Bright for Internet Computer NFTs

Yumi and Entrepot are not the only entities bringing about NFT innovation on the Internet Computer. There are at least nine fully functional NFT marketplaces at present, including CetoSwap, ICMarket, Hatch, and Impossible Things. We would also be remiss if we didn't mention the ORIGYN Foundation's pioneering work in ensuring authenticity, provenance, and preservation for the traditional, physical art marketplace. Truly, the future is bright and exciting!

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