Pudgy Penguins floods Twitter: from NFT project to Web3 multidimensional ecosystem IP
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Pudgy Penguins floods Twitter: from NFT project to Web3 multidimensional ecosystem IP
Pudgy Penguins has evolved into a comprehensive Web3 brand encompassing IP, physical products, games, and infrastructure.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: BitMart Research
1. Plump Penguins Spark Twitter Avatar Trend
Recently, Pudgy Penguins has sparked an avatar trend in the crypto space, with industry players including Coinbase, Binance.US, OpenSea, VanEck, OKX, and BitMart successively changing their official Twitter profile pictures to derivative Pudgy Penguins images. Notably, traditional finance giant VanEck's endorsement stands out—this 70-year-old asset management firm changed its Twitter avatar to a Pudgy Penguin as early as 2024, and on June 23 this year, brought physical plush toys to ring the Nasdaq bell, introducing a Web3 IP into mainstream financial institutions. The recent buzz has significantly boosted the price performance of Pudgy Penguins-related assets. As of July 17, $PENGU, the ecosystem token of Pudgy Penguins, surged over 216% in the past month, briefly surpassing a market cap of $2.8 billion. Trading volume for Pudgy Penguins NFTs reached $13.726 million, up 111% compared to last month.
2. The Ecosystem Landscape of Pudgy Penguins
Since the NFT bear market began in 2022, Pudgy Penguins has not been swallowed by market sentiment. Instead, leveraging its uniquely adorable penguin imagery, it has actively pursued IP licensing and commercial implementation, presenting a compelling narrative around brand building and cultural operations. Today, Pudgy Penguins has evolved into a core brand at the center of a diverse ecosystem. This includes Abstract—an Ethereum Layer2 network built on ZK architecture—as well as gaming applications, memes, NFT raffle platforms, physical toys, and consumer goods.
According to official data as of July, Pudgy Penguins toy sales exceeded $10 million, the gaming segment reached 60,000 users, and Abstract accumulated approximately 2.5 million active users. These figures indicate that Pudgy Penguins is transforming into a true Web3 super IP with substantial user scale, product commercialization capabilities, and on-chain infrastructure support.
1. Physical Ecosystem
In terms of physical products, Pudgy Toys by Pudgy Penguins is undoubtedly its most successful commercial venture. Since its initial release in May 2023, Pudgy Toys quickly topped Amazon’s bestseller charts, surpassing $10 million in sales, and later successfully entered over 10,000 Walmart stores across the U.S. With diverse product lines such as plush toys, action figures, and igloos, combined with a revenue-sharing mechanism linking Pudgy NFT ownership to real-world merchandise sales, Pudgy holders can earn passive income from physical sales—a model offering valuable commercialization insights for the entire NFT industry.
2. Gaming Segment
The gaming sector is another key focus area for Pudgy Penguins. In May, the 1v1 turn-based battle game Pengu Clash launched within the TON ecosystem, attracting over 60,000 players in its first week. Additionally, the upcoming multiplayer survival game Pudgy Party, set to launch in summer 2025, has already drawn significant attention, with its official Twitter account nearing 100,000 followers. By continuously launching lightweight games aligned with users’ social habits and entertainment needs, Pudgy Penguins is steadily expanding its IP reach and effectively drawing more users into its ecosystem.
3. Abstract Ecosystem
Abstract
Abstract is an Ethereum Layer2 network built using ZK-rollup technology, jointly launched by Igloo Inc.—the parent company behind Pudgy Penguins—and Cube Labs. Designed with a user-centric philosophy and a wallet system that eliminates the need for seed phrases, Abstract aims to lower user entry barriers and broaden adoption of consumer-facing applications. As of July 18, Abstract’s TVL reached $42.6M (a 533% increase from the beginning of the year), with daily active users ranging between 50K and 200K. The network hosts a diverse ecosystem including Pudgy Penguins-related games and NFT applications. Notable projects within the ecosystem include:
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Abster: Abster is the official meme mascot of Abstract. As of July 17, Abster’s market cap rose to $37.6M, making it the highest-valued meme coin within the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem.
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Polly: Polly is the official token of the raffle platform PollyPrize. Users can participate in platform raffles by purchasing Polly tokens. Each ticket costs $1 USD or 50 Polly points, with prizes featuring popular NFTs such as Goblintown and Moonbirds.
3. Future Growth Potential
In the short term, there are three key developments worth watching in the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem. First, crypto asset manager Canary Capital formally submitted an application to the SEC in March this year to launch a spot ETF based on $PENGU. If approved, this would become the world’s first ETF backed by native assets from an NFT project—a milestone moment that would bring unprecedented institutional recognition to $PENGU. Achieving asset anchoring and compliant circulation within traditional finance would greatly enhance Pudgy Penguins' liquidity, valuation foundation, and attractiveness to institutional investors.
Additionally, the Abstract infrastructure continues to evolve rapidly. Luca Netz, CEO of Pudgy Penguins, publicly stated during a livestream that Abstract is expected to launch its TGE before year-end. As the core infrastructure supporting Pudgy Penguins’ gaming, NFT interactions, and social applications, the introduction of its tokenomics will provide stronger incentives and collaboration prospects for ecosystem participants, further boosting momentum for native projects like PENGU, Abster, and PollyPrize.
Finally, the multiplayer survival game Pudgy Party is expected to launch this summer and has already amassed significant community interest. As the game approaches release, meme characters like Abster may see in-game integrations and gameplay synergies, further strengthening brand stickiness and driving ecosystem engagement.
Today, Pudgy Penguins has far surpassed the scope of a traditional NFT project. It has evolved into a composite Web3 brand encompassing IP, physical products, gaming, and infrastructure. Starting from a simple profile picture IP, it has expanded into offline consumer goods, light social games, a ZK Layer2 infrastructure, meme tokens, and raffle platforms—gradually forming a closed-loop ecosystem spanning virtual and physical worlds, multiple chains, and diverse use cases. This comprehensive evolution explains why Pudgy Penguins remains active and influential amid an otherwise stagnant NFT market.
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