After the GPT-4o image-to-image function is launched, you only need to upload an NFT image and enter the command "Ghibli style" or "cyberpunk", and AI can instantly transform it into a new visual form. Of course, as shown in the figure below, you can change Curry's avatar to Azuki's style. So, when NFT becomes a style of painting, will it set off a new wave under AI?
Style is ownership
In the past few years, the core value of NFT has been built on "verifiable scarcity" and the unique community of holders. Whether it is the creation of CryptoPunks or BAYC, it is basically through the design of a set of traits, the use of algorithms to generate a limited number of "unique combinations", and give them social identity attributes. However, GPT-4o's image generation ability may be the driving force for the expansion of NFT styles - will we usher in an era where style is on-chain ownership?
Take Azuki as an example. His iconic Japanese anime style profile is regarded as a cultural symbol. Now users only need to enter "Azuki style" and upload any picture to immediately generate an image of this style, thereby driving the growth of dissemination on social media through "meme" images.
According to bitsCrunch data, the floor price of the Azuki series has fallen by about 44% from its high point in the same period last year, and other top NFTs have also fallen a lot from their high points. However, through the generation of styles by AI, coupled with the launch of later movies and works, will NFT develop in terms of "style ownership"?
Data source: bitscrunch.com
The game between practicality and bubbles
The shrinking transaction volume in the NFT market is not accidental. The market rebounded briefly in December 2023, mainly due to the hype of Bitcoin ecological inscription NFT. According to data statistics from bitsCrunch over the past 6 months, in December 2024, the concentrated release of tokens by traditional PFP projects brought a new wave of growth. By March 2025, the monthly transaction volume has fallen back to US$110 million, with most of the transaction volume concentrated in some projects with strong community operations and entity empowerment.
Data source: bitscrunch.com
However, we need to pay attention to whether the value of NFT also needs to shift to "non-automatable experience" when AI can easily copy the style of painting - such as offline rights, in-game utility or deep binding of community consensus.
From “Static Ownership” to “Dynamic Co-creation”
GPT-4o has brought an impact on many scenarios, but it has also spawned new possibilities. Although "dynamic NFT" has been widely discussed as early as 2021, with the improvement of AI tools, it can also bring more imagination. For example, holders are allowed to modify the PFP style in real time through AI tools, but each modification will be recorded on the chain to form a traceable creation history. This model transforms NFT from a "rigid avatar" to a "living art co-creation process", thus giving rise to new changes in IP. At the same time, the openness of the blockchain allows anyone to capture on-chain image data for training. The future game will also turn to "style patenting."
Conclusion
In the long run, the AI technology represented by GPT-4o may force the NFT industry to undergo a fundamental transformation, and it may also bring about a new wave. NFT can become a more generalized "metadata container" that exists only as a certificate of equity, while its visual expression is generated by users in real time through AI. For example, in the field of music NFT, 80% of album covers are custom co-created by holders, but the playback rights and revenue rights are still anchored to the original NFT. The end of NFT may not be extinction, but evolution into a more complex value network-when the style of painting can form an ownership, the true scarcity will return to the human need for community belonging, participation and continuous narrative.
