On Wednesday, September 20th, the NFT community celebrates International NFT Day. You may be asking, what does that actually mean? Read on for more information from the sponsor of International NFT Day!

Who is behind International NFT Day 2023? 

This year, International NFT Day is brought to you by Dapper Labs, and a number of other companies in the web3 and crypto space. 

What is International NFT Day 2023 celebrating?

While this is only the second year the NFT community is getting together to recognize September 20th as NFT Day, its history dates back half a decade to 2017. 

On September 20, 2017, Dapper Labs Chief Technology Officer Dieter Shirley published ERC-721, which introduced and coined the word “non-fungible token” and its functionality on the blockchain. Since then, other token standards, like ERC-1155 and 2023’s ERC-6551, have built upon ERC-721’s initial proposal. 

A brief timeline of NFT history:

• In May 2014, The “Quantum" NFT was minted on the Namecoin Bitcoin fork, widely considered the first NFT, long before the term “NFT” had even been coined.
• In October 2015, Etheria launched the first NFT-style smart contract, including the first virtual land and first pixel NFTs, on the Ethereum blockchain. 
• In June 2017, the Larva Labs team launched the first algorithmically-generated project “Cryptopunks,” a collection of 10,000 NFTs that were free to claim. Now, they’re considered NFT history as one of the first standout PFP collections.
• In September 2017, the first draft ERC-721 proposal was published by Dapper Labs CTO Dieter Shirley, which included the first formal usage of the term “NFT.”
• In November 2017, Dapper Labs launched the first NFT blockchain game “CryptoKitties.” These furry NFTs became so popular they crashed Ethereum by causing unprecedented transaction volume on Ethereum shortly after launch.
• In December 2017, OpenSea, the first NFT marketplace, goes live!
• In July 2018, the first NFT.NYC conference is held, kicking off a yearly event that’s become a major celebration for the NFT community.
• In October 2020, NBA Top Shot launched on Flow blockchain and is widely considered the spark that set off the NFT craze. Since its launch, NBA Top Shot has generated over $1 Billion in secondary market sales, becoming a beacon of mainstream user adoption for NFTs.
• In April 2021, ‍Bored Ape Yacht Club became one of the most recognizable NFTs in the space.
• In October 2021, Doodles, another highly-influential generative profile picture NFT project, comes to life. Their huge success led to Pharrell Williams being named the Chief Brand Officer of Doodles.

How did International NFT Day get its start? 

A group of leaders in the NFT space got together to launch the inaugural NFT Day on September 20, 2022, five years after ERC-721 was published. 

A year ago, Shirley (who published ERC-721) said: 

"Within a few short years, NFTs have already encouraged people to take their first steps into decentralized technology, but we're still early in the journey. NFTs allow people to own a piece of social space, from virtual locations, music, fashion, and art – even individual moments representing significant cultural touchstones. NFT Day gives all creators an opportunity to tell that story together."

Like some of the activations planned for this year, the NFT community was encouraged to mint a free NFT that commemorated the first NFT Day or attend other community events worldwide. 

Where does International NFT Day take place? 

Don’t let the FOMO kick in; if you want to participate in International NFT Day, you can. In web3 fashion, International NFT Day happens wherever you are. 

You can learn more about how to take your NFT Day experience to the next level by reading our full guide to participating in the second annual NFT Day on September 20th, 2023.

How to claim your NFT Day collectible:

The makers of NFT Day are giving out a free-to-claim NFT to anyone who wants one on September 20, 2023, minted on the Flow blockchain.

Collect your NFT Day FLOAT with Dapper and automatically be entered into a drawing to win NFT Day merchandise. Learn more here.