The Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) collection launched in April 2021. The NFTs depict cartoon ape profile pictures randomly generated by a computer algorithm and include more than 170 traits, including different background colors, clothes, ears, eyes, fur types, and accessories.^[1][2]

Individuals and brands including Justin Bieber, Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Jimmy Fallon, Paris Hilton, Gucci, and Adidas have owned or collaborated with BAYC NFTs.^[3]

The BAYC collection also served as a foundation for additional NFT collections including the Bored Ape Kennel Club (BAKC) and the Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC), as well as a general purpose-fungible token called ApeCoin.

Founders

The Bored Ape Yacht Club was founded by four friends in early 2021: Greg Solano, Wylie Aronow, Kerem Atalay, and Zeshan Ali. Solano and Aronow go by the pseudonyms "Gargamel" and "Gordon Goner", respectively, while Atalay and Ali go by the pseudonyms "Emperor Tomato Ketchup" and "No Sass", respectively.^[4][5]

The goal of the founders was to create a community of members who could own and trade unique, digital artworks. Gargamel and Gordon Goner enlisted the assistance of their friends, No Sass and Emperor Tomato Ketchup, who were both programmers, to help with the technical aspects of the project. Additionally, they hired an illustrator named Seneca to create the artwork for BAYC.^[6]

Greg Solano, aka Gargamel, is a Miami-based writer and editor with a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Virginia. He co-authored a book about the World of Warcraft and states that he has been interested in cryptocurrency since 2017.^[7][4]

Wylie Aronow, aka Gordon Goner, is a Miami native. He shares Solano's interest in literature and cryptocurrency. He proposed creating a club within BAYC for individuals to engage in crypto discussions and share jokes.^[7][4]

Kerem, aka Emperor Tomato Ketchup, is an engineer who graduated from the University of Miami with a degree in computer science.^[4]

Zeshan, aka No Sass, is a computer science graduate from the University of Virginia.^[4]

Seneca is the lead artist behind the Bored Ape NFT collection.^[6]

Launch

Yuga Labs launched the Bored Ape Yacht Club on April 29, 2021. Each NFT was initially priced at 0.08 ETH, which was around $190 at the time. Sales were initially slow until Pranksy, an NFT investor, digital art collector, and the founder of NFTBoxes, purchased multiple Bored Apes and tweeted about them to his followers. Within twelve hours, all 10,000 Bored Apes were sold.^[8]

Bored Ape NFTs grant their holders membership to the Yacht Club, which includes access to a digital graffiti board called THE BATHROOM.^[9]

Post Launch

Following the launch of the BAYC collection, Yuga Labs expanded its team and released new products. The company also acquired other NFT projects and launched ApeCoin (APE) as the native token of the Bored Ape Yacht Club ecosystem.^[10] Bored Ape and Mutant Ape NFT holders received about 10,000 and 2,000 tokens respectively.^[11] At its peak in April of 2022, the market cap of ApeCoin reached approximately US $6.75 billion.^[12]

In March 2022, Yuga Labs acquired the intellectual property of CryptoPunks and Meebits and announced that it planned to grant commercial rights to all CryptoPunks and Meebits images to their respective owners.^[13][14]

In April 2022, BAYC revealed that cybercriminals hacked its Instagram account and shared fraudulent phishing sites with visitors which enabled the theft of close to 135 BAYC NFTs.^[15]

On April 30, 2022, Yuga Labs launched the Otherside metaverse in collaboration with Hong Kong-based web3 gaming company Animoca Brands.^[16]

During ApeFest NYC at the NFT NYC conference that took place in June 2022, Eminem and Snoop Dogg launched a new music track titled “From the D 2 The LBC”, along with a BAYC-themed music video featuring their Bored Ape NFT characters.^[17]

In January 2023, Yuga Labs introduced a temporary web-based NFT game called Dookey Dash for Bored Ape NFT holders. The top-scoring player won a Golden Key Sewer Pass NFT. The winner was Twitch streamer Kyle Jackson, who also goes by the pseudonym ‘Mongraal’. Jackson subsequently sold the Golden Key Sewer Pass NFT to Adam Weitsman, CEO of Upstate Shredding, for 1,000 ETH, which was worth about $1.6 million at the time of sale in February 2023.^[18]

The Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs have expanded into Roblox via the virtual band KINGSHIP, created by Universal Music Group's 10:22 PM label. This Roblox experience includes quests, in-game items, and music, offering special access and benefits to KINGSHIP 'Key Card' NFT holders.^[28]

Reception

Celebrity and Brand Endorsement

Many celebrities have reported ownership of BAYC NFTs and several brands have done collaborations with the collection. Celebrities who have been reported to own Bored Ape NFTs include Eminem, Gwyneth Paltrow, Shaquille O'Neal, Neymar, Snoop Dogg, Mark Cuban, Post Malone, Stephen Curry, Paris Hilton, Jimmy Fallon, and Serena Williams. Adidas collaborated with BAYC for its digital collectible, "Into the Metaverse".^[19]

Owners of Bored Ape NFTs enjoy access to a private Discord group, where they can connect and communicate with fellow Bored Ape members, including celebrities. Additionally, Bored Ape holders can participate in THE BATHROOM, a collaborative graffiti board.^[10] They can also use ApeCoin tokens to buy BAYC merchandise and event tickets, as well as participate in the ApeCoin DAO and vote on proposals for future projects.^[20]

Dookey Dash

Yuga Labs released Dookey Dash, a limited-time game available from January 18 to February 8, 2023, to Bored Ape NFT holders. Players compete to achieve the highest score and win a Golden Key Sewer Pass NFT. Dookey Dash is an “endless runner” game, similar to games like Subway Surfers and Temple Run. Holders of BAYC and Mutant Ape Yacht Club NFTs will be able to claim a ‘Sewer Pass’, which is required to play Dookey Dash, for free.^[21]

Mutant Ape Yacht Club

The Mutant Ape Yacht Club is a collection of 20,000 NFTs with mutant ape characters on them. The NFTs were created by exposing existing BAYC NFTs to a vial of Mutant Serum. There are 3 types of serums: M1, M2, and M3. M1 and M2 serums cause the apes to mutate while retaining some of their original traits, while M3 serums cause the apes to mutate completely, which results in the apes losing all of their original traits.^[22]

Bored Ape Kennel Club

The Bored Ape Kennel Club is a collection of 9,602 cartoon dog NFTs created by Yuga Labs. The collection was launched in June 2021 and was offered for free to BAYC NFT holders. Each BAKC NFT is generated from a combination of traits. Some of the rarest traits include missile launchers and jetpacks.^[23]

Bored Ape Chemistry Club

The Bored Ape Chemistry Club is a set of 10,000 Mutant Serums that were airdropped to BAYC NFT holders. These serums were directly sent to the Ethereum wallets of BAYC holders, specifically M1, M2, and Mega Mutant holders.^[24]

Otherside

Initially announced in March 2022, the Otherside project by the Yuga Labs team is an MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) connected to the BAYC ecosystem. The Yuga Labs team reports that the Otherside project will blend components from MMORPGs and Web3-enabled virtual worlds to become a metaverse that will offer an interoperable experience with other metaverses.

Otherdeeds are NFTs that represent a virtual land plot that can be owned and utilized by its owner in the Otherside metaverse. 45,000 Otherdeeds NFTs were reserved for Bored Ape NFT holders and Yuga Labs employees and partners.^[25]

No Content for Ownership Rights as of now.

BAYC NFTs derive their value from their unique traits and accessories. There are over 170 traits in the BAYC collection. Some traits are rarer than others, such as the Solid Gold Fur trait, which is available on 46 BAYC NFTs. The Brown Fur trait, which is found on 1,370 BAYC NFTs, is more common. Each ape can have four to seven trait categories, which are as follows:^[26]

• Background
• Clothes
• Earring
• Eyes
• Fur
• Hat
• Mouth

According to Rarity.Tools, the five rarest Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs are as follows:^[27]

1. Bored Ape #7495: This NFT stands out due to its unique traits, including a dagger in its mouth, a cyborg eye, a cross earring, and DMT fur.

2. Bored Ape #3953: This NFT is the second rarest Bored Ape NFT and was purchased for 18.88 ETH on May 1, 2022. It belongs to a select group of only 28 apes with an unshaven beard and a pizza in its mouth.

3. Bored Ape #9606: This Bored Ape has an unshaven beard and a pizza in its mouth, making it one of only 28 apes with this trait.

4. Bored Ape #7616: This Bored Ape has several rare features, such as trippy fur, a cross earring, a black t-shirt, and a cowboy hat.

5. Bored Ape #4873: This NFT is the fifth-rarest asset in the collection and was minted by Pransky. It is one of only 46 apes with the Solid Gold Fur trait and features other rare traits like an army hat and tie-dye shirt.