$SOL Ordinals on the Rise: how on-chain NFTs can change the future of BTC

Ordinals have gained traction in the Bitcoin ecosystem, provoking debates, moving the network, and generating opportunities for artists, collectors, and miners. This innovation allows data — such as images, texts, or videos — to be inscribed directly in satoshis (the smallest units of BTC), creating a unique form of on-chain NFTs on Bitcoin's original blockchain.

For those used to associating NFTs exclusively with blockchains like Ethereum, Solana, or Polygon, the idea of digital collectibles existing natively on the Bitcoin network may sound surprising. But this change is underway and has already been causing practical and conceptual impacts on the oldest network in the crypto market.

In this article, you will understand what Bitcoin Ordinals are, how they work in practice, what the impacts are for the ecosystem, and what we can expect in the long term.

What are Ordinals?

The Ordinals protocol was launched in January 2023 by Casey Rodarmor. It is based on a simple but powerful idea: each satoshi (1 BTC = 100,000,000 satoshis) can be numbered and uniquely identified. This makes it possible to "inscribe" data on specific satoshis, permanently registering content within the Bitcoin blockchain.

Remember: the limit of Bitcoin units is 21 million, and just under 20 million are already available as they have already been mined. If each of these units means 100 million units of satoshis, it is easy to understand how immense the potential growth space for this new type of NFT is.

Unlike traditional NFTs, which store their metadata in external solutions like IPFS or centralized servers, Ordinals are completely on-chain. This means that the NFT content — image, audio, code, or any other data — is registered directly on the Bitcoin blockchain, making it more resistant to censorship and data loss.

In practice, Ordinals function almost like the creation of a new layer of use for B