Welcome to the OpenSea digest. Let’s look back through the biggest NFT and web3 news of the week.

Amber Vittoria drops ‘Auras’

On Dec. 12 abstract artist Amber Vittoria released “Auras,” her latest collection of colorful, dreamy NFTs, on Coinbase layer-two (L2)  Base. The 550-item collection of abstract, pixelated artworks sold out by noon, following a three-stage drop for VIPs and the general public.

As explained in the collection description, each Aura represents an emotional snapshot of the human experience. Vittoria avoided coding in rarity traits or added utilities for the artworks to reinforce the idea that each piece stands on its own as a celebration of complex emotion.

Pudgy Penguins introduces $PENGU

Pudgy Penguins just dropped $PENGU on the Solana blockchain, a new token designed to power its ecosystem and deepen the connection between fans and the broader web3 world. The team said in a tweet that $PENGU will give millions of global fans a way to align with the characters as Pudgy Penguins moves from an NFT phenomenon into a mainstream brand. In addition, the brand offered an open invitation for anyone to join The Huddle, the Pudgy Penguins online community.

‍Note: The mention of the $PENGU token is for informational purposes only nor is it intended as financial or investment advice.

New York Red Bulls takes ticketing on-chain

The New York Red Bulls major league soccer franchise locked in a 13-year deal with Sports Illustrated Tickets to rename its arena “Sports Illustrated Stadium” and bring blockchain ticketing to every event starting in 2026.

Built on Avalanche, the Sports Illustrated Tickets Box Office platform will turn tickets into digital items as a means to slash counterfeits and enable perks like personalized content and resale tracking. Fans can also join the VIP program, Club SI, or snag digital keepsakes. 

This decision positions Sports Illustrated Stadium as the first major-league venue to adopt blockchain ticketing across the board.

Leap of Faith charity art auction gives back to St. Jude Children’s Hospital

Leap, a pseudonymous web3 creator, rallied over 30 NFT artists for a live charity auction at Art Basel Miami to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The lineup included heavy hitters like Snowfro, creator of Art Blocks and the Chromie Squiggles series, the color-loving generative artist Jimena Buena Vida, and Vinnie Hager, known for his signature hand-drawn style. Azuki and Doodles, two popular profile picture (PFP) projects, also joined the cause. 

Leap reportedly started his mission after raising $100,000 in a single day for St. Jude earlier this year, driven by his father’s battle with stage 4 prostate cancer.

Justin Aversano previews ‘Moments of the Unknown’

Justin Aversano, the portrait photographer behind the heartfelt “Twin Flames” collection, dropped a sneak peek of his upcoming project, “Moments of the Unknown.” The teaser suggests another deeply personal collection, this time shot over the course of a year on Super-8 film across all seven continents. 

The film aims to capture fleeting, intimate glimpses of humanity’s shared experiences like joy, struggle, and connection. Aversano pairs the visuals with music from NASA’s Golden Record, a phonograph record containing sounds carried aboard the Voyager 1 and 2 missions as a way to communicate humanity to any potential intelligent extraterrestrial life. 

Yuga Labs acquires Tokenproof’s technology 

The team behind Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) has absorbed the technology team from Tokenproof, a company that creates tech for on-chain fan experiences and live events, into the company’s R&D division.

Tokenproof specializes in verifying NFT ownership for real-world use cases, such as allowing holders of digital items like BAYC NFTs to securely access events and perks without exposing their wallets to security risks. 

Since 2022, Tokenproof has reportedly collaborated with BAYC for big events like ApeFest. Moving forward, it’s expected that Tokenproof will help develop tools for Otherside, Yuga’s metaverse.

Phantom Wallet expands to Sui 

Phantom, a leading crypto wallet that was, until recently, associated with the Solana blockchain, is continuing to expand its capabilities to new ecosystems. The now-multichain wallet just rolled out support for Sui, a performance-focused layer-one (L1) blockchain known for low fees and fast transaction speeds.

Farcaster announces plans to launch its own chain

Decentralized social app Farcaster this week announced it’s building Snapchain, an Ethereum L2, to handle over 10,000 transactions per second. Snapchain will use the OP Stack, an open-source development software set designed to support interoperability within the Ethereum ecosystem. Farcaster will reportedly offer a $2-per-year plan that lets users store up to 10,000 posts and process 500 transactions per hour. 

Also this week, Farcaster co-founder Dan Romero posted a walkthrough of the updated Frames features. The update includes a full-screen interactive canvas based on HTML/CSS/JavaScript, reliable and fast mobile wallet transactions, the ability to save, search, and discover frames, access to native mobile notifications, and more.