Okay Bears is an NFT project on the Solana blockchain that offers a blueprint for a “community-centric, world-leading” w3 company. That might sound like a fancy way of saying the company has elaborate plans, but in this case there’s an actual blueprint.
This NFT project is part of a larger plan (hence the blueprint) that includes a studio, gallery, and a marketplace to buy, sell, and trade NFTs associated with Okay Bears.
What Are Okay Bears?
Okay Bears are a collection of 10,000 NFTs on the Solana blockchain. These cartoon bears all have random traits assigned in a similar manner as many other NFT projects of this type.
| Mint Date | Apr 26, 2022 | |
| Mint Price | 1.5 SOL | |
| Total Supply | 10,0000 |
On the secondary market such as at OpenSea, the floor price for these Bears was at the end of April 2022 around 80 SOL, which translates into well over $7,000. There are roughly five thousand Okay Bears owners.
What makes this particular effort interesting isn’t just its ambitions in the space. The description of Okay Bears NFTs on OpenSea.io includes a blurb about these NFTs representing a “culture shift” that is meant to encourage “a virtuous community that will transcend the internet into the real world”.
The traits are divided into the following categories:
- Mouth
- Fur
- Eyewear
- Hat
- Clothes
- Eyes
- Background
Trouble In Bearland?
There’s been some controversy over Solana projects in general, and some of that has affected Okay Bears. One source notes that in earlier days of Solana development it was possible to find knockoffs of Ethereum-based NFT projects offered via Solana.
There were, according to Decrypt.com in a May 2022 article, copies of CryptoPunks and Pudgy Penguins could be found on the Solana Blockchain.
The Okay Bears collection is full of original artwork. It didn’t ride the coattails of other projects by imitating them or using their intellectual property. But Okay Bears has suffered the same fate, in reverse, as Pudgy Penguins.
What do we mean by “in reverse”?
Enter Not Okay Bears
In a twist of fate for the Solana platform, Not Okay Bears is an Ethereum-based copycat profile picture NFT project that has, according to multiple sources, taken the Okay Bears NFT images and simply altered them a bit and reposted them for sale on Ethereum.
Some have experienced a degree of schadenfreude, or taking pleasure from the misfortunes of others, over this. The general feeling reported elsewhere is that Solana is finally getting a taste of its own medicine–having the success of a legitimate project undermined by a copy-cat project.
And how well is that project doing? It started by selling the Not Okay Bears at .02 ETH each, worth about $40 at one time. But later? The price jumped up to .1 ETH or about $200 at the time.
Compared to the “real” Okay Bears, it’s really a drop in the bucket, so to speak. One source reported Okay Bears selling for well above $13,000 at one time. And the original Okay Bears NFTs are the gateway to an exclusive marketplace as well as merchandise and other perks.
What’s Next For Okay Bears
While some have wondered if the Okay Bears project includes plans for a takedown notice or other form of action against the creators of Not Okay Bears, at press time all sources report the project laying low about the controversy.
This project seems to have its sights set on partnerships with established industry names in fashion and collectibles, and there are plans to expand the merchandising arm of this project out of “members only” territory in the service of “brand awareness”.
Okay Bears Links
Website: https://www.okaybears.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/okaybears
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/okaybearsnft/
Discord: https://discord.com/invite/bearwithus
Opensea: https://opensea.io/collection/okay-bears
Magic Eden: https://magiceden.io/marketplace/okay_bears
Joe Wallace has covered real estate and financial topics, including crypto and NFTs since 1995. His work has appeared on Veteran.com, The Pentagon Channel, ABC and many print and online publications. Joe is a 13-year veteran of the United States Air Force and a former reporter for Air Force Television News.
