When it comes to NFT investing, many people instinctively say "It's been completely cooled off." Last week, some friends learned that I still hold NFTs, and a hint of surprise flashed in their eyes—since the second half of 2022, the entire NFT market has been in a prolonged downturn. Digital collectibles that once soared to astronomical prices have now fallen by over 90%, with some even becoming complete junk. But I want to correct a misconception here: NFTs haven't disappeared; they have experienced a brutal bubble burst. Projects that only had images and lacked real value support have been ruthlessly eliminated, while truly substantive NFTs are undergoing market restructuring.

The key is to understand what the essence of NFTs really is. Most people treat them as "digital images" for speculation, which is a fundamental misunderstanding. The true value of NFTs lies in **digital ownership certificates**—guaranteed by blockchain technology to ensure the uniqueness and immutability of digital assets. This is what fundamentally distinguishes them from ordinary image files. The reason the early NFT market experienced such severe bubbles was simply because project teams issued a bunch of images with crude methods, relying solely on hype to drive prices, without any real application or ecosystem support. Such projects were bound to be cleansed by the market.

After this round of "big waves and sand washing," there are mainly two tiers of NFTs with a chance to rebound. The first is leading projects with strong community consensus—they have been validated by the market, accumulated a large and active user base, and possess strong risk resistance and continuous innovation motivation. The second includes NFTs with practical application scenarios, such as projects deeply integrated with gaming, art creation, or IP licensing. These projects, supported by clear demand, have shown resilience even in bear markets. The core logic for selecting high-quality NFTs is actually simple: see whether the project team is genuinely building an ecosystem, whether community consensus is authentic, and whether the application prospects are clear—not blindly following price fluctuations.