TikTok has announced a collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) featuring contributions from Grimes, Lil Nas X, Bella Poarch and more.
Entitled “TikTok Top Moments,” the collection is the viral social media app’s first whole-hog foray into the world of blockchain-based digital collectibles.
The NFTs also represent a partnership with Immutable, a layer 2 network built on top of Ethereum. It’s designed to make transactions a little more user-friendly, promising “zero” transaction fees and “100% carbon-neutral NFTs.” (Though, because Immutable is still engaged with Ethereum, it’s still incentivizing activity on an energy-intensive proof-of-work blockchain.)
Lil Nas X’s NFT is the first of six total, and is set for auction on Oct. 6; the other five NFTs will sell in subsequent weeks.
A catch is that because these NFTs are built on Immutable, as opposed to the base layer of the Ethereum network, they’re not interoperable with the rest of the blockchain. And rather than holding an auction on a marketplace like OpenSea on Nifty Gateway, TikTok has opted to create its own digital auction house – another way in which these NFTs are somewhat siloed off from the rest of the crypto ecosystem.
Layer 2 solutions like Immutable or Polygon can give companies more control over how an NFT drop plays out, though they risk alienating crypto hardliners and Ethereum purists (most prominent NFTs are built on the base layer of the Ethereum network).
Other creators involved with TikTok’s NFTs include Brittany Broski (also known as “Kombucha Girl”), Curtis Roach and Coin Artist, who comes from the crypto side of things.
In a press release, TikTok said it plans to showcase all six of the videos at an upcoming exhibit at the Museum of the Moving Image, in Queens.
