The world of NFTs is never short of ups and downs, but very few projects can interpret the fluctuations to the extreme like Moonbirds, from the glorious peak of 38.5 ETH to the abyss of 0.22 ETH, and then within just three months, it completed a thrilling turnaround.
The turning point occurred at the moment Spencer acquired Moonbirds, from peak to fall, then to rebirth, it traversed the craziest curve in digital collectibles, while Spencer stood at the center stage, reshaping a forgotten project into the hottest NFT in the crypto circle.
Peak Start
On April 16, 2022, Moonbirds, created by Digg co-founder Kevin Rose, officially debuted with a minting price of 2.5 ETH.
7,875 NFTs were swept away through the whitelist in 48 hours. Holders believed they bought not just pixelated owls but the core ticket to the PROOF ecosystem - a private community limited to 1,000 top NFT collectors and artists.
On the day of the project's minting, a small incident occurred. COO Ryan Carson was found to have spent $580,000 sweeping up rare Moonbirds. As an insider with access to rarity data, his precise 'sniping' is akin to blatant insider trading.
The community criticized internal trading on Discord, and under public pressure, Carson announced his resignation nine days later to start his own NFT fund, 121G.
This matter rarely did not become Moonbirds' Waterloo. Market sentiment remained hot, with the floor price rising from 3 ETH to 6 ETH, then to 13 ETH, and finally surging to 38.5 ETH. In less than a week, early minters welcomed a 15-fold return, making it one of the fastest wealth creation myths in NFT history.
Fun Fact: At that time, Moonbirds also introduced the 'Nesting' mechanism, which simply means 'soft staking': Moonbirds would be locked in the holder's wallet and could not be traded but could earn extra rewards. This design turned players who initially wanted to cash out quickly into long-term holders.
Collapse of Trust
However, the turning point soon arrived. On August 5 of the same year, Rose made a shocking decision for the entire community: unilaterally announced that Moonbirds would adopt the CC0 protocol without community discussion. This meant that holders lost exclusive commercialization rights to the NFT, allowing anyone to use Moonbirds images for commercial activities.
For many, this is a blatant betrayal, the first real rift between leadership and the community, and shadows have since loomed over Moonbirds.
At that time, influenced by XCopy, the crypto artist, CC0 became a trend in the art world. Open copyright means works can be more easily re-created, turned into memes, and merchandise, thereby increasing exposure. For a single artwork, this might be a shortcut to amplifying influence.
The problem is that Moonbirds is not just a single artwork but a PFP series. The logic of PFP contradicts CC0; the avatar itself is the entry point of the IP. Holders are willing to invest time and money to build it precisely because of its exclusivity.
The rebound wave is extremely strong.
Three years later, Twitter KOL @waleswoosh reflected on this, saying that the community's panic about CC0 now seems somewhat exaggerated. After all, very few holders can successfully commercialize PFP authorization.
But at that moment, a mistake and poor communication from Rose ignited the entire community's dissatisfaction, and the decline of Moonbirds began from there.
From August 2022 to the end of 2023, the floor price of Moonbirds dropped from 19 ETH to less than 2 ETH.
Fun Fact: At that time, almost all projects were releasing merchandise, and Moonbirds was no exception. The official team airdropped a wave of exclusive souvenirs to holders participating in Nesting. The author has also received them and honestly resonates with the following comment.
The Era of Silence
In February 2024, Yuga Labs, the parent company of Bored Ape Yacht Club, acquired Proof and its projects, including Moonbirds.
Once the news broke, OpenSea CMO Adam Hollander bluntly called it 'a mess' and further remarked, 'Moonbirds is one of the worst operational cases in NFT history; they earned nearly $100 million but did not fulfill their promises.'
The acquisition brought a glimmer of hope. Holders were informed that Moonbirds would be integrated into the Otherside metaverse. The acquisition news briefly spiked the floor price from 1.5 ETH to 2.5 ETH, but it only lasted for two weeks.
Yuga attempted to mend the rift by reverting the copyright model from CC0 back to exclusive commercial rights for holders and launching a brand new 3D avatar for integration with animation and Otherside.
Unfortunately, these efforts did not resonate with the community. In August 2024, the floor price plummeted to 0.22 ETH and only slowly rebounded to 0.8 ETH by the end of the year. For the vast majority, it seemed that the project had long since become a mere shell.
Fun Fact: Kevin Rose publicly admitted that he relied on K to relieve the pressure of operating Moonbirds. After Proof was acquired by Yuga Labs, some interesting voices appeared in the comments.
Who is this person named Spencer?
If you have the same questions, then you have come to the right place.
On May 31, 2025, the news of Moonbirds being acquired by Orange Cap Games was announced on Twitter. The co-founder of Yuga Labs stated in the announcement: 'Moonbirds needs a team that sees the Moonbird as central, and Orange Cap Games is the best choice to unleash their potential.'
Standing in the spotlight is Spencer, the founder of Orange Cap Games. From this moment on, the fate of Moonbirds began to reverse.
Unlike those past 'grand narratives', Spencer did not present a massive roadmap after taking office. He even stated directly: 'We will not fulfill the old vision of Moonbirds but will create our own roadmap. Some people may not like this, but that's okay.'
This statement sounds simple, but it is this sense of authenticity that reignited confidence. After experiencing the CC0 controversy and leadership turmoil, the Moonbirds community needed not hollow promises, but someone who could communicate continuously and step up to lead.
Spencer gradually rebuilt trust in the most primitive way: posting frantically to support Moonbirds, tirelessly answering community questions, shouldering all doubts, becoming the most solid backbone in the hearts of holders.
Moonbirds was reborn, and community cohesion reached unprecedented heights.
On July 21, Spencer summarized the milestones of the 51 days since Orange Cap Games took over on Twitter: OpenSea directly changed the Moonbird to the official avatar, the series dominated the Ethereum NFT trading chart for five consecutive days, the Telegram community surpassed 25,000 active members, and $1.4 million entered the prize pool for purchasing stickers.
Call for the Birb Army
From the low point of 0.3 ETH when Spencer took over to last week's 3.9 ETH, the floor price of Moonbirds has rebounded over 1000%. A series that seemed to have reached its end in early 2025 is now soaring once again.
This was not a coincidence. As early as the coldest winter of the NFT market in 2023, Spencer made what seemed like a crazy decision: he swept up a total of 144 Pudgy Penguins from the bankruptcy liquidation of Three Arrows Capital at a medium price of six figures and openly stated he did not intend to sell. What seemed like a crazy move helped him earn over $10 million in the end.
This 'diamond hand' attitude sent a clear signal to the market: Spencer is not a short-term speculator but a true long-term builder.
Through Orange Cap Games, Spencer turned Pudgy Penguins' IP into a card game Vibes TCG, generating over $1.5 million in revenue and surpassing 350,000 online matches. This living example proves that NFTs are not just speculative tools but real IPs that can 'break the circle' and enter the mainstream market.
When he announced taking over Moonbirds, the community naturally projected their hopes onto him. Perhaps Moonbirds could replicate the successful trajectory of Pudgy Penguins, as the fat penguins once fell into a trough but revitalized under proper management.
This familiar plot has fundamentally changed the community's mindset: from 'when to sell' to 'why to hold on'. Moonbirds is no longer just a temporary chip for speculators but is gradually seen as a brand asset under construction.
On Twitter, this means regaining CT's attention. The most direct way is to achieve enough discussion. The Birb Army was gradually rallied by him, and Moonbirds quietly established its place on Twitter.
But for the Moonbirds community, the price rebound is just a superficial phenomenon; what truly rebounds is the belief.
Spencer's methodology is actually quite simple: the best marketing is not dazzling roadmaps or billion-dollar hollow promises, but solid actions that make the community feel they are participating in a valuable construction.
In other words, all of this was merely a bet on Spencer, and judging from the current outcome, the market clearly chooses to believe in him.
Moonbirds Return
For Moonbirds, the story is just beginning.
In a recent interview, Spencer discussed his phased plan: Step 0 is to awaken the community, Step 1 is to turn Moonbirds into an IP platform, and Step 2 is to deliver products and collaborations.
"In five years, I hope Moonbirds become an omnipresent IP, something that every household can recognize, with its physical products on store shelves, and become a digital presence that attracts more newcomers into this space."
Now, the momentum has become evident. On August 18, 2025, Moonbirds became the first NFT project to make it to the Kaito list, symbolizing its influence is breaking through core circles.
Meanwhile, speculation about potential tokens from the outside and Spencer's relationship with Pudgy Penguins founder Luca Netz also heightened expectations.
Moonbirds return; this time they may no longer be just passersby.
Further Reading:
A conversation with Spencer Gordon-Sand from Orange Cap Games
#Moonbirds #PudgyPenguins #KAITO🔥🔥🔥🔥
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