History and evolution of Azuki NFT
Azuki is an NFT project with a unique worldview that combines anime and street culture, launched in January 2022 by Chiru Labs, with the goal of building a “brand of culture” on the Web3. In a short time, it has attracted the attention of NFT collectors around the world.
[January 2022] Launch and immediate sell out.
– Method of Sale: Dutch Auction (price sold out at 1 ETH)
– Sales: 10,000 units
– Features: High-definition, anime-style PFP (profile picture) + exclusive community called “The Garden”.
– Initial response: High quality of the art and the community has a lot of heat, and it’s a “next generation BAYC”.
At this point, floor price broke through 2-3 ETH within a few days and has been climbing steadily ever since.
[Q1-Q2 2022] Price spike and temporary peak.
– April 2022: Azuki floor price rises to about 29 ETH.
– Factors:
– Global NFT bubble
– Heat of the community
– Expectations for fashion and IRL (real world) collaboration.
[May 2022] Founder Zagabond’s “past rug allegations” uncovered.
– Content: confession that Zagabond had anonymously launched and eventually abandoned three previous projects (including CryptoPhunks)
– Impact:
– Decline in trust from some communities
– Price temporarily fell to the 10 ETH level.
– However, the project itself continues and maintains a following.
[Late 2022-2023] Ecosystem expansion and steady transition
BEANZ release (April 2022)
– Mini-characteristic NFTs (20,000) distributed free of charge to Azuki holders
– Role in expanding Azuki’s worldview
Hilumia release (January 2023)
– A “virtual city” co-created with the community
– New approach to brand and identity development
Prices have remained stable at 10-15 ETH during this period.
[June 2023] Release and “crash” of Azuki Elementals.
What is Elementals?
– Azuki’s expanded collection: 20,000 units.
– Preliminary mints available for Azuki holders.
Problems.
1. the art was very similar to existing Azuki (“you can’t tell the difference”)
2. oversupply of the collection damaged rarity .
3. general sales ended after about 15 minutes → some holders were left behind and complained
Results
– Azuki’s price: plummeted from 15 ETH to about 7 ETH (halved in 48 hours).
– Elementals’ valuation is also low, with the price languishing at around 0.3 ETH
– Chiru Labs later issued an official apology.
[January 2025] ANIME Token Issuance and Signs of Re-emergence
Purpose
– Utility token to spread Azuki’s worldview throughout the web3
– Starting point for the decentralized anime project “AnimeChain”.
Token Overview
– Total supply: 10 billion tokens
– Distribution:
– To Azuki/BEANZ/Elementals holders 37.5
– Remaining to community support, investors and foundations
Evaluation
– New expectations generated by the community, but also sideways in terms of price due to selling pressure
– Noted as a milestone in the strengthening of the ecosystem.
Spirit DAO coming on the scene (2023-)
– DAO composed of holders of “Spirit Azuki”, one of the rarest Azuki.
– Support organization by investors, collectors and entrepreneurs
– It advises and supports Azuki related projects and organizes IRL events with the aim of maximizing brand value.
—IRL events are organized.
Current Status (April 2025)
– Azuki floor price: approx. 2.5 ETH
– Elementals: approx. 0.25 ETH
– BEANZ: approx. 0.2 ETH
– Azuki is holding its own through community activities and external partnerships while the overall NFT market slumps.
Summary
Azuki has carved its own path in the Web3 space with its artistic perfection, brand development, and community culture, and while it has experienced a major loss of credibility due to the Elementals issue, it is worth noting that it is reinvigorating with the ANIME token and Spirit DAO moves.
Despite the difficult market environment, Azuki continues to evolve from an “NFT collection” to a “Web3 brand” and will be closely watched.
