The NFT community is reeling from what can only be described as a punch to its collective gut on May 30. <\/p>\n
After a consistent downturn of NFT art sales volume in recent months \u2014 followed by the sudden, frenzied rise of highly speculative crypto memecoins<\/a> and Web3 figureheads asking their followers to send them money for no reason<\/a> (and succeeding) \u2014 artists and collectors alike were left feeling particularly soured on the Web3. <\/p>\n So, it was welcome news when well-known NFT influencer Andrew Wang tweeted<\/a> the following to his audience of nearly 200,000 on May 30:\u00a0\u201cI woke up today to see one of my friends trending on Twitter, @hopeexist1,\u201d Wang wrote. \u201cShe made a collection to help herself battle cancer, and some awesome Web3 people spotlighted her today, so I\u2019d like to add to it.\u201d<\/p>\n Wang was referencing a Chinese pixel artist named Sarah. Known as hopeexist on Web3 Twitter, her work has been collected by some of the biggest names in the space, including Drift<\/a>. Sarah had been battling lacrimal gland cancer, an illness that affects the eyes. To help raise funds to cover her medical bills, she created a 10K PFP NFT collection<\/a> called Pixel Penguins<\/a> in February 2023. With Wang and others drawing attention<\/a> to the collection, Pixel Penguins quickly minted out. <\/p>\n Within a few hours, $117,000, along with Sarah\u2019s Twitter profile, disappeared, with the funds moving out of the project\u2019s contract and into new blockchain addresses<\/a>. It was a rug-pull scam<\/a> \u2014 and one of the longest cons in Web3 history.<\/p>\n Fraud is nothing new to Web3<\/a>. Project founders pull the rug out from their communities all the time, and bad actors are constantly finding ways to separate unsuspecting NFT lovers from their art or crypto tokens. What makes hopeexist\u2019s scam unique is how the person behind the account, whoever they really are, built up a level of communication and trust with some of the space\u2019s most seasoned veterans before executing their plan. <\/p>\n Wang, for example, had been in contact with hopeexist for the better part of 2022, the con artist having established a connection with him by commenting on his Twitter posts in a supposed attempt to draw attention to their art. While promoting Pixel Penguins this week, Wang even explicitly called attention to the fact that hopeexist\u2019s collection was not a scam and that he\u2019d \u201cput [his] rep on the line\u201d in doing so. <\/p>\n the artist’s name is @Hopeexist1<\/a> and i started collecting her 1\/1 pixel art about a half year ago when she posted her work in my replies hoping id see it. in a space filled with underrated artists who deserve more exposure, she was another, and yet, special pic.twitter.com\/VhWL68K32h<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 andrew wang (@andr3w) December 26, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n I’ll put my rep on the line to say this is for real amidst all the scams in our space. I speak with her art teacher often when she’s gone for treatment and he says she’s the best student he’s ever had, that her talent is too precious, that she must survive. He cares like a father pic.twitter.com\/bIgzLNXPaT<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 andrew wang (@andr3w) May 30, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n But hopeexist\u2019s cancer play is old, dating back to at least 2021, in which Web3 collectives were promoting their work as a way to raise funds for their treatment<\/a>. Once hopeexist disappeared after the Pixel Penguins mint and it became clear that \u201cSarah\u201d was not who she said she was, Wang hopped on a Twitter Space<\/a> to address the situation, apologizing for his lack of due diligence<\/a> and if anyone bought into the project because he promoted it. <\/p>\n \u201cI woke up, saw it trending, [and thought], \u2018Ok, it\u2019s another chance to do good.’\u201d<\/p>\n Andrew Wang<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n \u201cI woke up, saw it trending, [and thought], \u2018Ok, it\u2019s another chance to do good.\u2019 She\u2019s an artist that I collect,\u201d Wang said in response to questions of how much research he did into the artist. <\/p>\n Part of that Twitter Space was devoted to a healthy discussion of how Web3 enthusiasts should go about doing their own research, with some claiming that not many individuals are going to do more than a few minutes of looking through an artist\u2019s social profiles and artwork before deciding if they are legitimate or not. <\/p>\n Some have criticized DachshundWizard and Levi<\/a>, other NFT influencers who promoted the project, for failing to look into hopeexist\u2019s claims before singing Pixel Penguins\u2019 praises. In the fallout of the rug pull, critics have pointed to the fact that the artist had been called out in the past<\/a> for shady behavior, having listed stolen art on their Foundation page. <\/p>\n This account @Hopeexist1<\/a> is selling STOLEN ART on their foundation page. DO NOT BUY!<\/p>\n \u2014 GooeyCrunch \u270a (@GooeyCrunch) November 5, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Others, themselves past victims of someone taking advantage of their goodwill, believe that getting burned by scammers<\/a> while trying to support a good cause isn\u2019t reason to come down on good intentions. This kind of social engineering, they say, is common, and we should empathize with those who want to trust and believe others, especially those in dire situations. <\/p>\n The mood in the Web3 community has been at a palpable low since news of the rug pull spread, with artists and collectors expressing their exasperation with the fact that, even while explicitly trying to counteract the toxicity of the space, they were met with more scams and bad actors. In the same Twitter Space in which Wang addressed followers\u2019 concerns, Web3 influencer and ambassador to The333Club, DancingEddie<\/a>, shared precisely this feeling.<\/p>\n \u201c[The trends we\u2019ve seen are] something that we are really repulsed by, so repulsed that I\u2019d rather put money toward something that I believe,\u201d Eddie said. \u201cThis seemed like a reasonable and aptly timed thing to believe in. It\u2019s absurd to me that we look for some respite from the absurdity of the space and go right back into it.\u201d<\/p>\n Others noted how the increasing frequency and presence of scams make it all the more difficult for Web3 evangelists to promote the tech to non-crypto natives<\/a>. <\/p>\n Morally corrupt individuals have overtaken the timeline. Crypto is in need of a massive reboot if it’s ever to be taken seriously.<\/p>\n \u2014 Bharat Krymo (@krybharat) May 30, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n What did you enjoy paying for the most?<\/p>\n \u2014 Mando (@rektmando) May 31, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In the aftermath of the rug pull, many are wondering just how low Web3 can sink. The common refrain that gets trotted out when the NFT community takes a hit is that there are still good people doing good things in the space and that, overall, it\u2019s worth having, despite the difficulties. All clich\u00e9s are boring in their self-evident truth, but that shouldn\u2019t stop people from sitting with the fact that it\u2019s not all terrible; quite the contrary. <\/p>\n For example, Western art aesthetic champion Jeremy Booth<\/a> recently put together an open edition for Emmie Sperandeo, a photographer who documents life in the Western U.S. who sustained multiple skull fractures after being thrown from a bucking horse onto a fence railing. Priced at 0.011 ETH, 114 editions have been minted with five days left on the OE\u2019s run. If you\u2019re one of the individuals feeling bleak about the state of Web3 at the hands of scammers, this is one of many good causes<\/a> to contribute to.<\/p>\n gm<\/p>\n “For Emmie\u201d is now available on @manifoldxyz<\/a> <\/p>\n All proceeds go directly to supporting Emmie\u2019s road to recovery. Link below. pic.twitter.com\/RF2Ph7CPii<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 jeremybooth (@jeremybooth) May 30, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Another fact worth remembering is that rug pulls scams are made possible by Web3\u2019s decentralized, pseudonymous nature. Until the space engineers a way around having its cake and eating it too, these risks will always be present, and NFT enthusiasts have to take the good with the bad.<\/p>\n Ultimately, each person in Web3 will have to make their own choice about whether or not they think the crypto and NFT world is one still worth inhabiting. Could you benefit from a mental health break<\/a>? Or even a short break from Web3 altogether? Do what you feel is best, and don\u2019t listen to anyone who tries to chide you for \u201cgiving up in the bear only to come back in the bull.\u201d <\/p>\n Nobody has the right to judge you for how you decide to prioritize taking care of yourself<\/a> in this chaotic, confusing, and sometimes extremely disheartening Web3 space. It\u2019s not going anywhere \u2014 and neither are we. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nHow hopeexist played the long game<\/h2>\n
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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe community responds<\/h2>\n
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Is Web3 worth the trouble?<\/h2>\n
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