Earlier this week, cryptocurrency aficionados and venture capitalists gathered at Miami Beach, Florida for one of the world’s most prestigious art exhibitions. The Art Basel Miami art exhibition included multiple NFT exhibits for the very first time. There were also 200 other events sponsored, many of which focused on the technology that underpins these digital artefacts.
NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are unique digital assets with ownership rights confirmed and kept on a blockchain. Musicians and artistes are yearning to create them as it becomes a means to take control of information that has previously been easy to copy online. One such artiste is rock band Linkin Park, who made their debut in 1996 and continues to remain relevant today by releasing a new NFT mixtape last week. Mike Shinoda, lead singer and co-founder of the band, stated, “Certainly there’s a lot of buzz. The majority of individuals believe that a bubble is forming. But most of us in the field believe that regardless of whether it goes up or down, it’s a new entity that’s here to stay in some form.”
The excitement benefits all areas of the crypto sector, according to Tristan Yver, head of strategy at Miami-based FTX U.S. According to Yver, digital art can be a less scary approach to expose people to blockchain technology. “Everyone has a rudimentary comprehension of art.” “We don’t all comprehend cryptocurrencies and blockchain – it’s the next step toward widespread acceptance,” Yver told CNBC. “For many consumers, NFTs are the first time they contact with cryptocurrencies and blockchain.”
Bitcoin and blockchain technology were once synonymous. However, in the last few years, a slew of other blockchains have emerged, supporting anything from finance to video games. The major benefit of using a blockchain, also known as a distributed ledger, is that it is “decentralised.” There is no single point of failure and no central authority controlling these networks.
Packy McCormick, founder of Not Boring Capital who was also in Miami this week, stated that NFT events were crucial in bringing like-minded people together. However, the focus is increasingly shifting to other novel blockchain applications and decentralised autonomous organisations (DAO), a new type of governance structure.
