Gates expressed his reservations about the asset class at a climate change conference, saying it is "100% based on greater fool theory."
Bill Gates, the world's fourth-richest man, spoke Tuesday at the TechCrunch climate change conference about the progress society has made in supporting the climate movement, his assessment of current global economics, and his skepticism of NFTs.
The tumultuous financial decline of cryptocurrencies has been closely correlated with the NFT market in recent months, as previously sought-after collections have seen 60-80% value reductions. As a result, cynicism has become the dominant narrative in the industry.
"Obviously expensive digital images of monkeys are going to improve the world immensely," Gates sarcastically stated in his interview, adding, "We all agree on that." Gates singled out the market's most popular collection, Bored Ape Yacht Club, in his interview.
"I'm used to asset classes with output, such as a farm or a company that produces goods. Having an asset class that is entirely based on the [...] greater fool theory — that someone will pay more for it than I do — and that has at its core this sort of anonymity that allows you to avoid taxation or any sort of government rules regarding kidnapping fees or other things [...] That is not something in which I am involved. I'm neither tall nor short, nor do I have any of those characteristics."
The greater fool theory refers to the inflated valuation of assets — whether stocks, real estate, or even NFTs — that are distributed between the hands of foolish willing participants in financial terms.
In December 2019, while Gates was still on the board, Microsoft announced the launch of Azure Heroes, an Ethereum-based digital collectible on the Azure cloud platform designed to promote and reward inclusive behaviors among developers.
The learner is the entry-level asset, and the Mentor and Maker Badgers are the prized possessions. The beaver avatars ascend in rarity level determined by the difficulty of attainment, with the learner being the entry-level asset and the Mentor and Maker Badgers being the prized possessions.
Just over two years later, Microsoft released "Azure Space Mystery," a digital game developed in collaboration with Enjin and compatible with Minecraft that teaches players about famous female scientists from history.