Is the Dogwifhat NFT the Most Outlandish Meme in Crypto History?

The sale of the Dogwifhat NFT for $4.3 million has sparked debates on its outlandish price in crypto history. This meme, featuring Achi the Shiba Inu, has become the most expensive meme NFT, highlighting the intersection of internet and crypto culture that has given rise to a wave of meme NFTs based on iconic internet memes.

Is the Dogwifhat NFT the Most Overpriced Meme in Crypto History?

On Monday, an image of a puppy in a knit beanie sold for a staggering $4.3 million on the blockchain. While some may find this absurd, the puppy in question is no ordinary canine. It's Achi, the Shiba Inu immortalized in the iconic Dogwifhat internet meme.

This sale has propelled Achi NFT to the top of the most expensive meme NFT charts, but it's far from the first. The intersection of internet and crypto culture has spawned a plethora of NFT iterations of some of the most famous memes of all time.

Dogwifhat: The King of Meme NFTs

The Dogwifhat NFT, which sold for 1,210.759 ETH (approximately $4.3 million), owes its success to the popularity of the original meme, which emerged in late 2019. However, its astronomical price is largely attributed to the meteoric rise of WIF, a Solana meme coin inspired by the meme, which has surged in value in recent months.

Achi's South Korean owners sold the NFT, netting a cool $4.1 million after fees. The photo was purchased by GCR, a prominent pseudonymous crypto trader, via an auction on Foundation.

Doge: The Godfather of Dog-Related Memes

Before Dogwifhat, the record for the most expensive meme NFT belonged to Doge, the progenitor of all dog-related memes. In June 2021, an NFT of the original Doge photo, taken by Japanese kindergarten teacher Atsuko Sato, sold for a whopping 1,696.9 ETH (approximately $4.234 million).

Doge not only played a pivotal role in internet culture but also in crypto, inspiring the creation of Dogecoin, the first-ever meme coin.

Pepe the Frog: From Internet Icon to NFT Royalty

On October 5, 2021, the original Pepe the Frog Genesis NFT, created by Matt Furie, sold for a staggering 1,000 ETH (approximately $3.5 million). Pepe has long been intertwined with crypto culture, inspiring Pepecoin, an Ethereum meme coin that has achieved significant success.

The Pepe NFT was initially purchased by Starry Night Capital, an NFT fund established by Three Arrows Capital and Vincent Van Dough. Following Three Arrows' collapse in 2022, the NFT was seized by the liquidator and sold to crypto executive Andrew Kang for an undisclosed sum.

Charlie Bit My Finger: A Viral Video's NFT Debut

One of YouTube's most iconic early videos, Charlie Bit My Finger, joined the NFT craze in 2021. The parents of Charlie and his brother hoped to monetize their viral moment to fund the boys' college tuition.

On May 22, 2021, an NFT of the video sold for $760,999 to Dubai-based collector 3FMusic. The family initially planned to remove the video from YouTube to enhance the NFT's exclusivity, but 3FMusic reportedly expressed no objection to it remaining online.

Nyan Cat: The Meme that Launched a Thousand NFTs

Nyan Cat, a pixelated animation of a cat with a Pop-Tart for a torso, took the internet by storm in 2011. In February 2021, its creator, Chris Torres, sold the NFT for 300 ETH (approximately $590,000) to an anonymous crypto user.

Torres' sale inspired countless other meme creators to auction their iconic images as NFTs, allowing them to finally profit from and take ownership of the internet history they had created.

Disaster Girl: From Meme to NFT Success

In 2021, Zoe Roth, the toddler who posed in front of a burning building with a subtle smirk, sold an NFT of the original Disaster Girl photo for 180 ETH (approximately $430,000). The NFT was purchased by 3FMusic, the collector who now owns several NFTs on this list.

Overly Attached Girlfriend: A Meme's NFT Journey

In the spring of 2021, Laina Morris, the content creator immortalized in the Overly Attached Girlfriend meme, auctioned an NFT of the photo on Foundation. The sale netted Morris 200 ETH (approximately $411,000), with the NFT going to collector 3FMusic.