Hi. It’s Dana. Welcome to the Web 2.5 newsletter covering how Web 3.0 is shaping the real world.

Wowzers! I took a two-week holiday break from sending this newsletter, and A LOT has happened.

• I've got a huge trove of news headlines to cover today.

• I've got a snazzy new Web 2.5 website.

• And I've got a new tagline I'm testing: "Where Web3 Meets the Real World." I want to keep a sharp focus on real-world impact, use cases, and "so what" of all of this. So, expect to see that coming through in the stories we include here AND in the Season 2 podcast guest slate.

A quick note on newsletter format. In my year-end survey, your feedback was that you want a newsletter that's both easy to breeze through, but you also want context that's missing in a bullets-only digest. So, both it shall be. I'm back this week with context above the fold, and the headline round-up below, all for your browsing pleasure.

In terms of thoughts this week, it wouldn't be a January newsletter without some predictions and trends. Here are three (two of which were published in this predictions roundup from The Riveter):

1. The professionalization of NFT projects. Many NFT drops in 2021 and early 2022 became token-gated communities in search of a business model. Going into 2023, with cash burn on their minds and secondary NFT trading volume all but dried up, the strongest (and most well-funded) of these communities will need to evolve. Expect to see these communities uplevel their senior teams, acquire smaller projects, and build out traditional business models (think products, services, memberships, and marketplaces) to sustain their operations.

2. The AI-ification of everything. While AI is not new, there’s been a surge in consumer-facing AI-powered tools in recent weeks (or maybe just a surge in Twitter threads about consumer-facing AI-powered tools). With tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney now available at everyone's fingertips, expect more and more people to experiment with AI-powered everything.

3. Web 2.5 will continue to thrive. The technology behind Web3 powers a more open, decentralized, participatory, and experiential internet. But in reality, people want to understand the “so what” of it all. They want to know how it can actually be used to improve our real world. So, expect the media (much like we do on the Web 2.5 Podcast & Newsletter) to talk more about use cases and real-world impact – and less about the terminology of the technology.

And now, on to this week the last three weeks in Web 2.5.

📰 Web 2.5 Roundup 📰

👜 Shopping, Retail & Commerce

Ready to be a fashion designer? H&M launched a Roblox gaming experience called "Loooptopia," which according to their development partner Dubit, "lets players experiment with materials and patterns to create their own clothing ranges." There will also be a ready-to-wear collection inspired by, you guessed it, the metaverse.

The Mall of the Emirates in Dubai opened the first-ever physical NFT shop where you can buy your NFT at an IRL mall.

Lowe's, the home improvement brand, will now use the blockchain to conquer merchandise theft.

Shopify is making it even more seamless for brands to design, mint, and sell NFTs right from their storefront.

Heller, a designer furniture brand, has partnered with a new tech company, Digby, to link individual furniture items to an NFT, thereby verifying authenticity on the blockchain.

💰 Financy Things

Mastercard is launching a web3-focused artist incubator with Polygon.

According to its trademark filings, Fidelity is exploring adding services in the metaverse including mutual fund and retirement planning and a potential NFT marketplace.

The Golden Egg Club, a new NFT project from Jeremy Falls, is backed by gold.

🖥 Tech Neck

Microsoft is rumored to be in talks with buzzy AI-company OpenAI to make a $10B investment at a $29B valuation.

Salesforce has built a Web3 Advisory Board because "tapping into [Web3 potential] requires a new way of thinking and approaching business problems ..." Yep.

OVR Technology showcased a new sensory experience at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2023 show by adding smell to virtual reality experiences.

LG announced that NFT & TV lovers can now trade digital collectibles right from the couch using an LG smart TV.

📺 Media, Entertainment, and anything Ryan Reynolds

Ryan Reynolds made a TV commercial using OpenAI.

Noah Kalina, the photographer who started taking a photo a day back in 2006, is now selling them as NFTs.

Game of Thrones' NFTs sold out quickly...but they are getting roasted on Twitter for the artwork.

🚘 Beep Beep

BMW announced a two-phase rollout plan to enter the world of Web3 by leveraging blockchain technology to improve internal operations, followed by the launch of a consumer-facing loyalty program.

Mercedes-Benz taped SUPERPLASTIC to launch a limited edition digital collectible. It has something to do with a 'Wackeldackel' but I don't know what that is, and I'm definitely not googling it.

⚽️ Sports

Sony is partnering with football (soccer) club Manchester City to create a sports metaverse where players can interact as avatars in a virtual stadium.

Chess, as in the sport of chess, is coming to Web3. The International Chess Federation is partnering with Avalanche to improve the player experience with on-chain player ratings and tournament data management, a historical game explorer, prize pools, and digital trophies.

FTX Arena is officially no longer FTX arena.

Fanatics, Michael Rubin’s sports platform company, is selling its 60% stake in sports digital collectibles NFT marketplace Candy Digital.

🤖 AI, Aye?

OpenAI began piloting ChatGPT Professional, a premium version of its viral chatbot.

Biologists are building artificial intelligences that can fight cancer, flu and Covid.

NYC outright banned students and teachers from using ChatGPT in the classroom.

The San Francisco Ballet is in hot water for promoting its ‘Nutcracker’ performances with A.I.-Generated art." Why? Because they used AI for free when they could have hired and supported an actual artist.

🤝 Deals

The Polygon blockchain paid $3 million to sway the popular NFT project y00ts over from competitor blockchain Solana. Turns out wheeling and dealing exists in Web3, too.

🚩 Bad Stuff

Not even the Chief Operating Officer of RTFKT is immune from a social phishing scam. He lost $173K worth of NFTs in a hack.

Is anyone surprised that FTX spent $7 million on food and $15 million on hotels in 9 months? Not really.

🦧 Degen Corner

PROOF, the Web3-native collective behind popular projects like Moonbirds, has signed on with United Talent Agency to focus on "partnerships that extend Moonbirds far beyond our existing Web3 audience, transforming Moonbirds into a global brand."

Nouns have morphed into their real-life selves at the Rose Bowl Parade.

🤓 Weekend Reading

All the ways crypto broke in 2022. Bloomberg.

The state of AI in 2022—and a half decade in review. McKinsey.

TCG Crypto Year in Review. TCG.

Decentralizing social media: a guide to the web3 social stack. Coinbase.

🌶 Hot Takes

Mark Cuban warns of potential new crypto scandal and fraud. TheStreet.

The year the NFT died and came back to life. Wired.

💼 Job Market

SuperRare cuts 30% of staff. TechCrunch

Coinbase cuts 950 employees. Decrypt.

Head of Marketing, Doodles. Apply

Communications Lead, OpenSea. Apply.

Social Media Manager, LinksDAO. Apply.

☠️ And finally...

🫶 And that’s a wrap! Thanks for reading Web 2.5. See you out there in the interweb3s.

🎙 Web 2.5 Season 1 Podcast Recap 🎙

Don't forget to check out our final two episodes of Web 2.5's Season 1 Podcast with Justin Breton (going behind the scenes of Walmart's Roblox activation) and Avery Akkineni (covering big brands in Web3 from her role at Vayner3). And while you're at it, take a peek at anything you missed from Season 1 👀.

How'd We Do?

DISCLAIMER: This content is strictly educational. None of this is financial, tax, or investment advice — and not a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please always do your own research. For important disclosures, see www.web2point5.io/disclosures.