A digital artwork titled "Last Selfie" by anonymous artist XCOPY has sold for a record-breaking $3.27 million (727 ETH), marking the highest price ever paid for an editioned artwork in the tokenized art space. The piece, edition 9 out of 10, was created in 2019 and represents a significant milestone in the digital art market.
XCOPY, a London-based anonymous artist whose work has gained tremendous recognition in the crypto art world, is known for a distinctive style characterized by glitched, dystopian, and provocative imagery. The artist's work frequently explores dark themes including death, decay, and apathy through flashing visuals and distorted loops that create an unsettling yet compelling aesthetic.
The astronomical sale price represents a dramatic increase from the previous sale of another edition of "Last Selfie" (edition 7/10) in May 2025, which sold for $1.2 million. This significant price jump demonstrates the growing demand and recognition for XCOPY's work within the digital art community and among serious collectors.
"Last Selfie" was originally minted in 2019 as a limited edition series of 10 pieces, with XCOPY initially releasing each edition for just $20 when the tokenized art market was still in its infancy. The recent sale involved an intermediary representing the buyer who systematically approached each collector owning an edition of the artwork. Nine out of ten collectors rejected the substantial offer before one finally agreed to sell, highlighting the strong attachment collectors have to this particular piece.
Among the notable collectors who own editions of "Last Selfie" are prominent figures in the digital art world including Raoul Pal, CozomoMedici, and punk6529. The identities of both the seller and buyer in this record-breaking transaction remain unknown, maintaining the privacy often preferred in high-value crypto art deals.
Jediwolf, an AI art collector who declined the buyer's offer, shared his perspective on the artwork's significance. "I managed to collect my Last Selfie three years ago, and ever since, I've been reflecting on its meaning," he explained. "It may appear as a grim yet humorous caricature, yet I think the message goes well beyond the surface. I perceive it more as a reminder at this point: time is the only wealth we actually have. Today, that reminder spoke to me again."
Georg Bak, a digital art advisor and founder of the Digital Art Mile art fair, emphasized the cultural importance of XCOPY's work in the crypto art movement. "Last Selfie is one of the most recognizable icons of crypto art," Bak stated. "It's a true masterpiece by XCOPY, alongside his 'Right-click and Save As guy' (2018). One of its editions now belongs to the prestigious Punk 6529 Museum, which underlines its cultural significance."
Bak expressed confidence in the continued growth of the digital art market, predicting even higher valuations in the future. "It's no surprise that it recently achieved a record price," he said. "I believe that in the coming years, we'll see works like Alien Punks, Beeple pieces, and XCOPY 1/1s reach values of $50 million or more. I only regret not buying an XCOPY for under $100 when I first discovered his work back in 2018."
While this sale represents a record for editioned digital artworks, it's worth noting that the highest price ever paid for a tokenized art piece remains $91.8 million for digital artist Pak's "The Merge" in 2021, which sold on NFT marketplace Nifty Gateway. At the time of that sale, Duncan Cock Foster, co-founder of Nifty Gateway, described it as "an incredible moment for NFTs" and "further validation for NFTs as a medium of art and innovation that could only be integrated through blockchain technology."
