--- title: "Bored Ape Investors Are Suing Paris Hilton as the Whole Thing Falls Apart" description: "## Floored Apes" date: "2023-08-18" modified: "2023-08-18" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/bored-ape-investors-suing" categories: - "Blockchain" - "Future Society" tags: - "bored apes" - "nfts" - "the digest" --- # Bored Ape Investors Are Suing Paris Hilton as the Whole Thing Falls Apart ![Bored Apes investors are suing Sotheby's and a number of celebs including Paris Hilton for hyping up the tokens back in 2021.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Floored Apes Investors of the once-popular Bored Ape collection of NFTs are furious now that prices of the JPGs have [cratered]() — and they're out for blood. As [*CNN* reports](), a group of investors are suing famed auction house Sotheby's for hyping up the tokens back in 2021, arguing that they "misleadingly promoted" the collection, and colluded with Bored Apes creator Yuga Labs to artificially inflate prices. The lawsuit also names several high-profile celebrities, including Justin Bieber and Paris Hilton, who they allege didn't disclose financial ties to the collection when promoting it. The investors are now seeking more than $5 million in damages. That's possibly in part to make up for the giant hole in their pockets. Bored Apes, which once sold for millions of dollars worth of crypto two years ago — a time when celebrities were willing to [shell out vast sums]() to be part of the conversation — [have absolutely plummeted]() in value and are now selling for as little as $52,000 each. ## Too Popular In 2021, Sotheby's [sold]() well over 100 of the Bored Ape NFTs to just one buyer for more than $24 million, vastly exceeding expectations and drawing mainstream media attention. For its part, Sotheby's maintains it did absolutely nothing wrong. "The allegations in this suit are baseless, and Sotheby’s is prepared to vigorously defend itself," the auction house told *CNN* in a statement. Yuga Labs has also come out, telling *CNN* that "these new allegations, like those in the previous iteration of this opportunistic complaint, are completely without merit or factual basis." The lawsuit [dates back to December](), when it was filed in a federal court in California, but only recently was amended to name the auction house as a defendant. But to prove that it was part of a "vast scheme" to artificially inflate prices will likely be difficult. The hype surrounding the largely unregulated tokens was astronomical back in 2021. But that was two long years ago, giving collectors and investors plenty of time to come to their senses. Perhaps silly and phoned-in JPG portraits of apes aren't worth millions of dollars after all. **More on Bored Apes:** *[The Bored Ape Crypto Just Hit an All-Time Low]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()