The most interesting NFT use cases of today come from organizations that do not label themselves as "NFT projects." It is expected that we will see more of these types of formats in the future.
"Everything will become an NFT."
This morning, I read a tweet by Paul Brody, the chairman of the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance, which started just like this.
As someone deeply interested in NFT technology, I fully support Brody on this point.
In essence, NFTs are ownership 'handles' for sets of data on-chain (on the blockchain). As a format, they are inherently adaptable, making them usable wherever ownership-related digital records are needed.
When combining such adaptability with the ability to write custom programs on-chain, NFTs will sprout in every aspect of human life. In some areas, they will gradually spread in a subtle and steady manner.
Since 2021, most people have only seen NFTs as art, PFPs (Profile Pictures), and game items. It is indeed true that we will continue to see innovative experiments in this space, like To Be a Machine, NORMIES, and DX Terminal Pro.
However, the spread of NFTs is not limited to art and culture. As Brody suggested, NFTs will continue to penetrate the financial and economic world.
Currently, if we consider some of the projects we see as frontrunners -
* Polymarket: The Yes/No outcomes of prediction markets are based on the ERC-1155 standard.
* Uniswap (V3/V4): Issues liquidity positions as ERC-721 and manages them.
* Liquity: Allows the 'Trove' loan positions to be transferred as ERC-721 and facilitates the on-chain lending market.
* ETH Strategy: Represents long bonds containing American call options as ERC-721.
* Flaunch: As new issuers, they can earn their trading fee revenues through ERC-721 Royalty NFTs.
* Sablier: Defines real-time payment systems as ERC-721.
* ENS: Manages domain name ownership and transfers on the blockchain through ERC-721.
* Courtyard: Real items are tokenized as ERC-721 like Pokémon cards, speeding up the trading market.
* FundingWorks: Funds obtained in soulbound NFTs that cannot be transferred are used together with Patron NFTs to reclaim unused funds.
* RAILGUN: Secure addresses include ERC-6551 (NFT smart wallets), allowing for the separate and secure use of popular DeFi apps.
* Warren: Helps to build direct websites on-chain without relying on anything external by using NFTs.
* zOrg: Issues NFT badges to validate membership levels in an on-chain DeFi corporation.
These are just the initial ideas that pop into my head. In reality, there are many other things that will remain.
The main point is that the success of the NFT format is not just about the format itself. What NFTs represent and the powers they can provide are what truly matter. The 12 apps mentioned above do not refer to themselves as 'NFT projects,' nor do they use NFTs as a primary selling point. For them, NFTs are merely the best and most convenient 'tool' for their current business processes.
As time goes on, most people will likely accept this conclusion and will begin to use NFTs in more innovative ways.
