If any more proof was needed that big companies are flocking to non-fungible tokens, this is it. Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, announced that NFTs will be coming to Instagram “in the near term.” An update on what we know so far.
NFTs to arrive soon on Instagram
The creator of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, had made a shift to the metaverse in the past year. He had renamed his company “Meta”, triggering a wave of interest in the subject from other tech giants.
The man’s interest in NFTs is therefore not really a surprise, nor is the arrival of Instagram in the field. Last May, the social network had indeed offered a seminar to creators, to help them create their collections of non-fungible tokens. This had begun to put the chip in the ear of observers, who bet on an interest of the social network for this technology.
But it is now a fact, and the official announcement was made by Mark Zuckerberg, during a South by Southwest conference held in Austin, Texas. He declared on the occasion:
“We are working to bring NFTs to Instagram in the short term.”
However, there is still no specific date of arrival, nor is it known which blockchain will be used.
NFTs created directly on the app?
Another announcement perhaps less expected: Instagram users will be able to create (mint) their NFTs directly from the application, still according to the boss of Meta, whose words were reported by the journalist Casey Newton.
We also recall that information had leaked from sources close to Meta earlier this year. They indicated that Facebook was planning to launch a non-fungible token marketplace, based on the OpenSea model.
This is the second time that Facebook/Meta is also fully engaged in the blockchain field. We remember, of course, its Libra cryptocurrency project, which met with unparalleled hostility from regulators, and had to transform several times before being abandoned by the company. No doubt this time, it will be more wary, and more prepared for a possible outcry from the supervisory authorities…