In the rapidly evolving world of Web3, change-makers and visionaries are crafting a new narrative for the digital future. Maria Barbirotto stands at the forefront of this transformation, amalgamating the boundless potential of Web3 with tangible real-world ventures. With “A Bored Year,” she offers an insightful exploration into the inaugural year of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), an emblem of the fusion between digital and physical realms. This intriguing narrative serves both as a time capsule for those who lived the excitement and a window into the exclusive world for those who didn’t. More than just a book, it’s an NFT-enabled experience that comes in two distinct editions: a standard ‘bored’ edition and a limited release exclusive for BAYC members. But Barbirotto’s vision doesn’t stop there. Venturing beyond literature, she has laid the foundation of IP Dream Hub, an incubator catalyzing the synergy between tangible products and the blockchain. Among her pioneering ventures are ‘A Bored Cocktail,’ a collaboration with Vikress Distillery, ‘The Artlife,’ a luxury glamping brand with token-gated memberships, and ‘W3BX,’ a vibrant hub for web3 events and experiences. Let’s dive into the mind of this web3 virtuoso and uncover the inspirations and aspirations that fuel her projects.
Interview with Maria Barbirotto
Maria, what inspired you to chronicle the first year of the Bored Ape Yacht Club in “A Bored Year”?
I joined the Bored Ape Yacht Club on May 1st, 2021, so I’ve been part of the club since the very beginning. I watched the whole movement unveil, form and shape through the contribution of all the OGs that were there since day one. I wanted to make sure that everyone had a place where to go to recall memories and emotions. The club changed many lives and in particular it changed the lives of many regular people. I call them dreamers. NFTs and the Bored Ape Yacht Club are a miracle for those who were actively looking for one and through the first year I’ve been taking an incredible amount of notes about the unexpected experience we were all living. When the club became the most established and inspiring sub-cultural movement in the web3 space I felt a wave of admiration by a lot of people who have been watching from the sidelines. BAYC is a story of opportunities, coalition,
creativity, business, innovation and community. I took all my notes and I decided to write a book. I decided to share the story of the club from the inside and starting from the unsuspectable times when it all started. I felt like a lot of emotions, events, episodes, connections were getting lost in translation and I felt how important it was for someone to document such an impacting experience and cultural change in the history of web3 and blockchain technology.
The book comes as both an NFT and a physical copy. Can you explain your decision to bridge the digital and tangible worlds in this manner?
There is a relationship between web3 and the physical world that I am fascinated about and that I love to explore and challenge. My main research in the web3 space as an entrepreneur and a business woman is focused on phygital and the creation of innovative experiences that rely on blockchain technology but promote in real life products, brands or events. There are two factors I took into consideration: being early and social behaviors. We are not at a point where the jump into web3 could be completely taken on-chain and virtual. There is still a lot of infrastructure development to get to a point where an event in the metaverse can offer a complete experience as an event in real life. And that is an immediate example. On a technical side I simply didn’t think an e-book would’ve guaranteed the same level of experience I can deliver with a physical book. On the other hand there is a social aspect. We as humans love and need experiences. Web3 is fascinating to me because it allows us to focus the attention on experiences, sometimes more than on the product. So, it was important to me to deliver a high level of experience and I did so through the project’s narrative and roadmap. There are several exciting steps to unlock the physical book claiming and in the book people will also find web3 again, with AI and AR features added to the physical book. It’s a journey between the physical world and web3, not only a book release.
What does freedom-based lifestyle in the web3 ecosystem mean to you, and how do you envision its future?
I have been promoting a freedom-based lifestyle actively for the past 8 years. I believe there is a powerful potential in supporting an open and free mindset when it comes to business development, working environments, creative processes, and general life balance. The world is going in that
direction, every month there are more and more projects being developed about coliving, nomadic lifestyle, remote working, and all those projects generate an incredible amount of productivity and innovation. When we unleash people from their constraints and motivate them to explore their natural capabilities, we also unleash their true potential and great things develop. Web3 is the perfect industry for freedom-based lifestyles as it’s founded on the values of decentralization and freedom itself. Web3 is a direct result of the research of freedom by a group of dreamers and innovators that brought that concept to life through technology. I believe the future is Web3. It is early to widely see it in society, but the blockchain and AI technology are making progress at a fast pace and are quickly deploying freedom-based solutions and innovations to create an autonomous society.
Can you shed light on the inception of IP Dream Hub and its role in revolutionizing the relationship between physical products and blockchain technology?
IP Dream Hub is a decentralized incubator of physical businesses, brands and products launched by Bored Agency as an innovative model for the social and experiential explorative project “A Bored Year”, launched in late 2022. It explores the interaction between the physical and digital realms, with blockchain and AI technology integration, for the development of business models and new brands. The core concept is to promote a fully decentralized and remote incubator that relies on at least 80% of decentralized and autonomous decisions through voting power and community participation. Ideas are brought to life, developed and executed not by a restricted and hierarchical team, but by a community of participants that have equal or fair voting power and actively contribute to the project. This promotes not only valuable strategic and marketing research, but also insights and contributions coming directly from future customers and users.
With ventures like ‘A Bored Cocktail’ and ‘The Artlife,’ you’re establishing unique business models in the web3 industry. What challenges have you faced in bringing these ideas to fruition?
The great thing about being early in an upcoming industry is that there are no real challenges in place, at least that are coming from pre-established
industries’ constructions and limitations. Everything is otherwise accessible and adaptable to the vision we want to execute. I like to believe that at this stage everything is executable and I have great experience in proving that true. I have been working with like-minded people for the execution of A Bored Cocktail and The Artlife, other web3 industry experts and researchers, along with web2 brands and business models that inspired the vision. We don’t see limitations or challenges, but possibilities and opportunities to expand our target audience and grow on a large scale while bridging two or more industries. A Bored Cocktail is a collaboration with a distillery that produces crafted canned cocktails and we are developing a limited edition series using IP rights from some of the most valuable NFT projects. This way we get to extend our audience to the organic customer pool of the distillery and at the same time open our web3 audience of collectors to them. The entire development and production is decentralized, and the recipe has been crafted by their team after collecting data from a series of decentralized polls in which the participants provided their choice of options.This way we can not only track the demand but also understand their preferences pre-production, at the same time creating a loyal and active community that engages with and around the product. The Artlife on the other hand is a more complex project. We are talking of a combination of real estate, hospitality, freedom-based lifestyle and web3. We developed and launched a glamping resort brand with token-gated membership. The concept is a blend of boutique hotel style, freedom-based community vibe, and co-working functionality, with prime features that are accessible only through a token-gated membership.
The token-gated membership for ‘The Artlife’ is a unique concept. How do you see tokenization reshaping luxury and exclusivity?
Luxury and exclusivity are the perfect match for blockchain technology. Despite the democratization of the process, accessing a feature or a benefit through a token allows us to create an extra layer of privilege through the implementation of exclusive technology and it also guarantees privacy, accuracy and transparency. Holders of the Artlife token-gated membership are not only considered members but also innovators, dreamers, pioneers that are contributing to the perfection of a life-changing technology. Free stays, exclusive SPA treatments, tailored experiences, high end networking
with like-minded people. These are just a few of the exclusive benefits that token holders get access to.
As someone deeply immersed in the web3 space, what do you believe are the most exciting opportunities and potential pitfalls in this ecosystem?
Web3 represents the next evolution of the internet, emphasizing decentralization, trustlessness, and user-centricity, primarily via blockchain and cryptographic technologies. There are numerous opportunities that excite me and keep me highly invested in the industry. I truly believe that limitless possibilities exist for the creation of new solutions, businesses, innovations that will strongly impact and mark not only the web3 industry but all industries in the long run. Interoperability, decentralized finance, autonomous organizations, data ownership, privacy, proof-of-authenticity and ownership are all solutions that can be adapted and extended to all industries. As potential pitfalls in my opinion the main issue is self-custody and self-management. The reasons why blockchain technology is a practical solution to many of the centralized-industries issues are not understood by everyone. The importance of decentralization is not immediate for regular people that believes in traditional systems and that most often ignore what are the backstories of the centralized systems they trust. Without understanding those concepts, it is hard to take seriously the importance of self-custody for example. All errors are made by humans, not by machines. In this case, there are not third parties to blame, so people will need to learn security practices and make sure to keep a high safety level at all times. I wouldn’t consider this a problem if people were more open to improve, understand and take responsibilities.
What advice would you offer to entrepreneurs looking to innovate at the intersection of the physical and digital realms?
Don’t wait. Just go for it. There is a strong support system in the web3 industry for those who are willing to explore beyond boundaries. My only advice is to start, make a plan and let it flow. We need ideas and products.
The future of Web3 is an exhilarating tapestry of innovation, boundless opportunities, and an intersection of the digital and physical worlds. Maria Barbirotto’s visionary insights into this realm, her groundbreaking ventures, and her unique approach to blending tangible products with the blockchain are testament to the transformative potential of this space. As the landscape of the Internet continues to evolve, pioneers like Maria are sculpting the next chapter, not just in technology, but in the way we experience, engage, and envision our digital and physical futures. To all the dreamers, entrepreneurs, and innovators out there: as Maria so aptly put it, “Don’t wait. Just go for it.” The Web3 revolution awaits.
