Bored Ape event guests say their suffered agonizing eye problems

• Yuga Labs said it’s investigating reports of eye problems by people who attended a recent NFT event.
• The Bored Ape Yacht Club creator told Bloomberg it was taking the complaints seriously.
• It said it was reaching out to attendees of the ApeFest event in Hong Kong to learn more.

Bored Ape creator Yuga Labs said it was aware that some visitors to its ApeFest NFT event last week have reported suffering from painful and burning eye problems.

Bloomberg reported the news. It said the NFT and Web3 company told it that it was “actively reaching out to those affected to better understand the root cause.” The event took place in Hong Kong.

Some ApeFest attendees said in posts on X that they had “severe burning” and “extreme pain” in their eyes. At least three said they had to go to the hospital after the event.

One said in a post on X that he was diagnosed with photokeratitis, a condition caused by unprotected exposure to UV radiation, and was given steroid eye drops after a hospital visit.

Another X user who said they went to the hospital said a doctor told him the pain in his eyes was “due to the UV from stage lights.” 

A video shared on X from the ApeFest event showed bright pink lights fitted around the stage and aimed towards the crowd. 

A third person said they went to the emergency room after waking up at “3am with extreme pain.” Several others responded to their posts and claimed to have experienced similar issues. 

“Yes I had same, and also @iamasifkamal Morning was insane – couldnt open my eyes without feeling like they were on fire,” NFT expert Evan Luthra said in a post on X. “I got better by basically washing them every hours since 6am, my friend went to the hospital around 4pm today when he couldnt take it anymore. On medication for a week,” he added. 

Yuga Labs didn’t immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment, made outside of normal working hours.

A similar incident was reported to have occurred in 2017, per Hong Kong Free Press, which said attendees were apparently exposed to UV light at a pop-up event collaboration between streetwear site Hypebeast and Japanese artist Hajime Sorayama.

Hypebeast told the publication at the time that the case was “under investigation” and that “an initial review suggests that the light contractor might have installed a type of non-approved lighting in a part of the area in the venue without our knowledge.”