Dubai Museum taps Binance to jump onto NFT bandwagon
Dubai’s Museum of the Future, the $136 million UAE government-sponsored museum that opened a few weeks ago, is joining forces with Binance NFT to roll out a range of digital products on blockchain.
The collaboration aims to create crypto replicas of the torus-shaped museum’s unique artworks, starting with their first-ever NFT collection – The Most Beautiful NFTs in the Metaverse.
The Museum of the Future envisions what the world could look like in 2070, with flying taxis, windfarms, and solar energy projects conducted in space. The seven-story structure jumps on the crypto trend to develop assets within fields of NFTs, cryptocurrencies and the blockchain, the future of mixed reality, mobility, the metaverse and other future technologies.
“This exciting project is the first of many future ventures that will see us working with the world’s brightest minds and construct high impact developments that will shape the future,” said Lath Carlson, Executive Director of Museum of the Future.
For its part, Binance NFT, the digital collectibles marketplace of the world’s leading cryptocurrency ecosystem, would help with its financial and technical know-how.
Museums seeking to jump into the NFT hype
While it may not be the case here, museums worldwide have faced substantial financial shortfalls due to a significant drop in revenue from visitors induced by the COVID-19 lockdown. As such, many have considered taking drastic measures, including issuing their own tokens. The British Museum, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, the Institute of Contemporary Art in Miami, amongst others, are monetizing their existing collections through non-fungible tokens.
The monetization is in fact often touted as the primary upside for museums seeking to jump into the NFT market. Moving forward, however, it remains to be seen whether NFTs will financially benefit brick-and-mortar museums, rather than creating new opportunities for crypto players.
Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications said: “Museum of the Future’s partnership with the world’s largest cryptocurrency and blockchain ecosystem player makes a significant contribution towards Dubai’s plans to establish a new international digital asset ecosystem, which will, in turn, generate long-term economic growth within the digital economy.”
Helen Hai, Head of Binance NFT added “We are honoured to partner with the Museum of the Future in Dubai, a truly unique and innovative concept. We look forward to working with the Museum to develop industry-leading digital products that enhance the growth of the industry and promote adoption of blockchain within the region.”
