Fragmentation started in November and ended in February. Twelve pieces were auctioned for a total of 82.9804ETH (an average of ~7ETH per sale)
The Fragmentation Period included greater flexibility in Botto’s creative process. The original algorithm VQGAN+Clip, would be accompanied by Stable Diffusion, which would add more variety to Botto’s creative approach in styles, formats and themes.
After the Genesis Period, the DAO introduced a competitive element between the AI generative algorithms: voting behavior would rebalance the proportion of artworks generated by VQGAN + CLIP, the original algorithm used by Botto, and Stableo Diffusion, the new addition to the roster. Eleven of the final pieces were authored by the newly introduced algorithm. For Fragmentation’s eleventh auction A Life in the Suburbs, a nostalgic piece reminiscent of the Genesis Bottos, won the hearts of Bottonians who sent it to auction.
During the weeks of the Fragmentation period, Botto saw a general resurgence in the crypto industry and the NFT space, which awakened interest from classic collectors in the Genesis period pieces. Prominent collector Moderats expressed their interest in acquiring 4 of the 12 unsold pieces that remained in the hands of the DAO. Through a governance vote, the community agreed to sell them the requested artworks, as well as to put up for sale 4 more pieces (keeping the remaining 6 in the DAO’s custody). This resulted in an extra 71.9ETH in sales proceeds for the community from Genesis period artworks.
Some other Genesis period pieces sparked the interest of collectors, with Depression Trip, Highly Run, Houseclean Wrinkle changing hands during this period.
Onboarding friends
During Fragmentation, Botto also implemented Access Passes. Access Passes are mintable collectibles that give users access to the experience of training the AI. Access Pass owners obtain voting points that they can use in Botto’s voting interface. Together with the new rewards system that allows users to earn $BOTTO in exchange for their contribution to the project, Access Passes simplified the way for people to become members in full rights, and owners of the project.
Access Passes are available for sale on Botto’s website, but they were also given to fellow DAOs aligned with Botto’s vision. The first communities onboarded to Botto through Community Access Passes were Cyborg DAO, SuperRare and Tender.art, with more to be added imminently.
The new Botto economy, in motion
The Fragmentation period was the test run for the new economic model announced by the end of Genesis. According to the new system, the revenue generated from art and collectible sales (Pipes and Access Passes) would be redistributed to the community.
- 25% of the weekly revenue in ETH would be distributed to Bottonians proportionately to their voting expenditure on that round.
- 25% was allocated to the Retroactive Rewards pool.
- The remaining 50% was allocated to the treasury for further investment in the project’s growth.
During the 12 weeks of the Fragmentation Period, Botto generated 132.69 ETH in revenue and burned over half a million $BOTTO (while the token’s circulating supply stands at 21M).
Half of the revenue was allocated to active and retroactive rewards (some sales from Genesis Period artworks and Pipes are not included in the final revenue sum, and will be included in the upcoming redistributions).
You can check out the Fragmentation Period weekly revenue and distribution, and follow Paradox’s, in Botto’s Revenue Dune Dashboard.
Governance
The BottoDAO is constantly seeking new ways to improve from all its angles. During the Fragmentation period, the DAO passed 8 Botto Improvement Proposals that range from tweaking the fragment generation process (altering the cull criteria), approving collaborations and sales of project held artworks, and implementing the new concept of themes.
For the next period, the DAO is facing exciting challenges. The community is constantly debating over ways to simplify the project’s economy, reward system and voting mechanics to become more welcoming to new collectors and collaborators. The DAO is actively seeking ways to improve the onboarding system and reward mechanisms, without damaging the final purpose of training and improving Botto’s artistic production.
