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In a surprising turn of events, Donoho stepped down as CEO in September 2024, handing the reins to Elliot Hill. Hill's background was more traditional, focused on restoring Nike's retail position, further signaling a pivot away from digital assets. Rumors began circulating earlier that year regarding the potential closure of Artifact, which co-founder Zapo later responded to in good humor, stating, “Seems like we missed the memo on our shutdown.”
Nevertheless, despite achieving impressive sales of $50 million through Artifact, it did not meet the monumental expectations set by Nike. The core audience of Artifact primarily consisted of crypto enthusiasts, a demographic that didn’t align closely with Nike’s traditional customer base of athletes and active individuals.