Hyundai Ventures Into Community-Based NFTs

• Hyundai announces partnership with Meta Kongz as it launches community-based NFT projects.
• Hyundai is set to launch more metaverse projects this year as it expands on its Metamobility concept.
• Despite fears that the NFT market bubble is tumbling, firms continue to jump in.

Hyundai has revealed it would be partnering with NFT group Meta Kongz to launch community-based NFTs. The move will make the top car manufacturer the first to launch a collection with a community around it.

On Sunday, top car manufacturer Hyundai released a 55-second video to announce its partnership with the NFT brand Meta Kongz and introduce its Metamobility Universe. Hyundai, as per reports, is set to launch a collection of 30 NFTs in honor of the partnership between the two groups on Wednesday.

In the clip, the Meta Kongz gorilla mascot journeys from Earth to the Moon in a classic PONY and a modernly redesigned legacy series PONY, demonstrating how mobility solutions can transcend time and space. In addition, Hyundai teases a shooting star NFT scheduled for release in May in the dying seconds of the film.

To host the community for the project, the automobile producers have created a discord and Twitter platform with plans to launch a website in May. Through the community platforms, Hyundai plans to regulate the value of its NFTs. In addition, community members will be given first-hand experience of the company’s Metamobility solutions and full communication access to the company.

Speaking on the announcement, Thomas Schemera, Hyundai Motor’s Global Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Customer Experience Division, said, “The Hyundai NFT Universe will extend the Hyundai brand experience, especially with MZ generation, in a completely new way, further reinforcing our commitment to innovation in both the real world and in the metaverse. We are extremely excited to introduce ‘Metamobility’ through our own NFTs and start this journey with ‘Meta Kongz.”

Notably, the company plans to dish out more NFT collections this year to expand its ‘NFT Universe.’ Furthermore, Hyundai has said that it would use returns from NFT sales to develop the project and the community.

More Industries Jumping Into NFT Space Despite Fears Of Bubble Collapse

In recent times, several economic experts have come out to say the NFT bubble has collapsed. Nassim Nicholas Taleb, essayist, and mathematical statistician famous for predicting the financial crisis of 2008, is among those who have shared this view. 

Taleb tweeted on Saturday, “The NFT thingy is starting to burst. All you need is higher interest rates for things that make no sense to start making no sense.” The statistician said this in response to the botched attempt of the owner of Jack Dorsey’s NFT tweet, who bought it for about $2.9 million, to sell it, with the highest bid being around $18k presently.

Notably, compared to the explosion and hype of the ecosystem last year, where Beeple was able to sell a piece for $69 million, the NFT trading volume has struggled this year. However, these factors have not deterred companies like Hyundai, who see the staying value of the technology and its potential community building and digital ownership.