World Wide Web’s source code NFT sells for $5.4M at Sotheby’s

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, has sold an NFT of the web's source code for $5.4 million at fine art auction house Sotheby’s.

World Wide Web’s source code NFT sells for $5.4M at Sotheby’s

The NFT called ‘This Changed Everything’ includes a time-stamped file of the source code's 9,555 lines, a 30-minute animation of the code being written, along with a letter written by Berners-Lee. 

Berners-Lee and his wife have decided to donate the proceeds of the auction to causes supported by the family. 

Although the $5.4 million is far away from the previous record of $69 million set in March for Beeple’s Everydays and less than some observers had predicted. 

Berners-Lee discussed the future of the internet and expressed his hope that it would remain open to allow it to be a continual source of creativity, technical innovation, and social transformation. These ideals were the inspiration behind Berners-Lee’s move into the NFT space.

“NFTs, be they artworks or digital artifacts like this, are the latest playful creations in this realm, and the most appropriate means of ownership that exists. They are the ideal way to package the origins behind the web,” he stated.

Data from Cryptoart.io shows that combined sales from the digital art markets have shrunk to $18.3 million in June from their peak of $205 million in March this year. Winklevoss-owned marketplace Nifty Gateway saw a 94% decline in sales from a peak of $145 million to $7.6 million. 

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