Instagram will begin testing non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in the coming week, according to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, are financial assets made up of digital data stored in a blockchain. Photos, GIFs, music, or any other type of artwork can be used as NFTs. This week, we’re starting to test digital treasures on Instagram so creators and collectors may display their NFTs on their accounts,’ Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. Facebook will soon get similar capability, as well as virtual reality NFTs on Instagram Stories via Spark AR, allowing you to place digital art in physical settings.
In a video, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri confirmed the latest news, saying that the test will start with a “handful of US creators and collectors” who will be able to display archives on their profiles, feeds, stories, and other places.
According to Mosseri,
We believe that NFTs – the concept of owning a one-of-a-kind digital object – is the one truly exciting potential for a subset of producers. I’d like to state up front that NFTs, blockchain technologies, and Web3 in general are all about dispersing trust and power. However, because Instagram is a centralised platform, there is a conflict.
NFTs created on the Ethereum or Polygon blockchains will be supported initially, but will eventually be moved to Solana and Flow, according to Meta spokesperson Christine Pai.NFT support on Instagram, according to Mosseri, will help spread the technology to individuals all over the world.