When it comes to nfts, one company reigns as kings of the industry: Yuga Laboratories.
In the space of 36 months, they went from a group of four friends to an industry giant, managing nft collections with a market capitalization of over $1 billion, with countless famous fans and global recognition.
Now, the company is forging new paths in gaming and, with the release of multiple titles on the horizon, x.com/yugalabs” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Yuga Laboratories They continue to grow not only themselves, but also the nft industry as a whole.
How did Yuga Labs become the giant it is today? Here's our complete guide to Yuga Labs in 2024.
What is Yuga Labs?
Yuga Labs LLC is a blockchain technology company, founded in February 2021 by Greg Solano (x.com/CryptoGarga” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>@CryptoGarga), Wylie Aronow (x.com/GordonGoner” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>@GordonGoner), Zeshan Ali (x.com/sassbayc” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>@SassBAYC) and Kerem Atalay (x.com/tomatobayc” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>@tomatobayc).
Headquartered in Miami, the company spans multiple nft collections, gaming projects, and entertainment brands, and despite its young age, Yuga is already valued at over $4 billion and has over 100 employees in its equipment.
Yuga Labs is best known for its nft collections, including:
- Bored Ape Yacht Club (x.com/BoredApeYC” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>BAYC): 10,000 ape avatars, minted on ethereum in April 2021. The second most valuable nft collection.
- Bored Apes Dog Club (BAKC): 10,000 dog avatars, minted on ethereum in June 2021. The original companions of the Bored Apes.
- Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC): 20,000 Mutated Apes, introduced to ethereum in August 2021. 10,000 were newly minted and the other 10,000 were created using Mutant Serum on a Bored Ape.
- twelve times: 300 pieces of generative art, minted as bitcoin Ordinals in March 2023.
- x.com/cryptopunksnfts” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>CryptoPunks and x.com/MeebitsNFTs” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Meebits: Acquired from Larva Labs in March 2022. The #1 and 40 most valuable nft collections.
In addition to nft collectibles, Yuga Labs is known for its range of x.com/yugalabsgaming” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>games
Yuga Labs also played a role in the formation of the x.com/apecoin” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Ape Coin DAOits popular $APE token and initiatives like ApeChain.
The history of Yuga laboratories
April 2021 saw the debut of Bored Ape Yacht Club, with 10,000 nfts minted at 0.08 eth ($250) each. The launch of Bored Ape Kennel Club and Mutant Ape Yacht Club, and the first annual ApeFest in October 2021, expanded the Yuga ecosystem and by the end of 2021, BAYC was the second most valuable nft collection.
2022 saw the introduction of Dookey Dash, an endless running game that can be accessed by Sewer Pass nft holders. Players competed to achieve the highest score, with the final winner being the Twitch streamer. x.com/Mongraal” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Mongraalselling his Golden Key prize for $1.6 million dollars (1000 eth).
These successes led to Larva Labs' acquisition of CryptoPunks and Meebits shortly after, and 2022 also saw the introduction of the Otherside metaverse, the formation of the ApeCoin DAO and the launch of the $APE token, and the acquisition of the 10KTF nft collection from Beeple.
In 2023, the bitcoin Ordinals TwelveFold collection was minted in March and two strategy games were released: Legends of the Mara and HV-MTL. Each has its own complementary nft collection, but mixed reception saw the titles transferred to gaming studio Faraway in April 2024.
Yuga acquired PROOF Collective, best known for its Moonbirds nft collection, in February 2024 and released a follow-up to Dookey Dash, titled Dookey Dash: Unclogged, in September 2024.
This unbridled success has not been without controversy.
In February 2022, a BuzzFeed article revealed the identities of Greg Solano and Wylie Aronow, who were pseudonyms until that point. In 2022, Yuga also filed a lawsuit against artist Ryder Ripps against his copycat collection RR/BAYC, a case that was ultimately settled in Yuga's favor in 2023.
In May 2024 the debut of x.com/ninachanel” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>Nina Chanel Abney“Super Punk World” Collection – The first release from Yuga’s Punks in Residence program. It received widespread backlash, leading to an apparent backlash from the Punks in Residence series, and continued speculation that Yuga was out of touch with the broader nft community, a sentiment that continues to this day.
What awaits Yuga Labs?
Yuga Labs has big plans for the future, particularly around gaming and the metaverse.
Otherside is still in development and there have been several successful, albeit limited, playtests so far. Otherside looks to be a cornerstone of the Yuga ecosystem going forward, although some are concerned about the pace of development so far and the quality of what we've seen.
The company has fostered deeper ties with Faraway, and the studio is currently developing the title in the Serum City universe in collaboration with x.com/novel_labs” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>innovative laboratories – and many more titles are likely to follow.
$APE continues to thrive, with ApeCoin DAO championing the launch of ApeChain, a Layer 3 blockchain built on top of ethereum Layer-2 Arbitrum. ApeChain's goal is to advance blockchain-based content, tools, and distribution platforms, making blockchain technology more accessible than ever.
Web3 would not be what it is today without the success of Yuga Labs. For better or worse, the Yugas are commonly seen as the leading figures in the industry and certainly one of the best known. As they confidently move towards 2025 and beyond, we are confident that their journey has only just begun.
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