With some industry sources estimating the non-fungible token (NFT) market value exceeded USD 2bn last quarter, a number of projects underway aim to extend NFTs to genetics, promote non-fungibles in Hollywood, and use the technology to facilitate grain trading, among others.
Paving the way for the technology‘s increased use in genetics, Harvard Medical School genetics professor George Church is set to auction off his genome as an NFT in the first such event to take place. Church, who succeeded in developing the first system for direct genomic sequencing in 1984, will put up one of the first genomes to be sequenced. The auction will be held through Nebula Genomics, a company he co-founded, Church told The Scientist. The auction’s date is to be unveiled on April 25, the National DNA Day.
Further extending the technology's use, Swiss crop trading start-up Cerealia is piloting the use of the technology which will allow to trade grain with the use of non-fungibles. The company has created a token backed by 30,000 tons of corn, aiming to reduce costs and improve supply chain transparency, according to the information obtained by Bloomberg.
Ahead of the forthcoming Academy Awards, aka the Oscars, which are slated for April 26, another project by online marketplace Rarible, Metaversal, and AdVenture Media will seek to promote NFTs by distributing them among 25 of the 115 nominated in this years ceremony.
As part of the initiative, twenty-five Hollywood insiders will receive three non-fungibles each, per Nomine(eth). The tokens will be minted with the names of those nominated in their respective categories which will include best actor, best actress, best supporting actor, best supporting actress, and best director. Among the pieces is an NFT created as tribute to the late American actor Chadwick Boseman, best known for his role as the Black Panther in the 2018 blockbuster movie. The proceeds from the Boseman tribute NFT will benefit the New York-based Colon Cancer Foundation.
Furthermore, marketplace for rare digital collectibles Project Ark - launched by greentech start-up Carbonbase and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)'s Panda Labs division - announced a partnership with HiVive Agency to bring NFTs to the Academy Awards nominees, with proceeds going towards the Panda Labs. Celebrities will be able to interact with 3D models of endangered animals, with video clips to be transformed into NFTs for sale.
Meanwhile, Grammy nominated creator Steve Aoki and digital artist Maciej Kuciara have teamed up with Tom Bilyeu of Impact Theory Studios to release a hybrid art and music NFT collection, Neon Future by Steve Aoki x Maciej Kuciara, drawing inspiration from Aoki and Bilyeus Neon Future sci-fi comic series. Blending 2D anime art and 3D techniques with original music composed for this project, the collection is set to drop on NFT marketplace Nifty Gateway on April 27.
“Steve Aoki's second NFT drop builds on the success of Dream Catcher, which reached over USD 4 million in sales and a record-breaking USD 888,888 bid,” Impact Theory Studios said, adding that 10 NFTs are to be made available.