NFT means “non-fungible token.” That’s a crazy way of saying it’s a digital thing that can’t change, and if you own it, you own it. So let’s say there’s a meme that goes viral and there are millions of copies of it worldwide. If you buy the original copy of a meme as an NFT, you own the original, regardless of how many copies exist.

 

Ok, so that sort of makes sense, but why would that have any value? If you think of the Mona Lisa, you can buy a copy of it on Ebay, and it’ll cost you $19.99. There may be a million copies of the Mona Lisa worldwide. Your grandma may have one hanging in her kitchen. So why is the version of the Mona Lisa in the Louvre considered priceless? Because it’s the authentic original.

 

NFT’s provide a way for you to own the digital equivalent of an authentic original Mona Lisa. But instead of the Mona Lisa, the digital artwork might be an animated flying cat with a pop-tart body (actually, a real NFT which recently sold for ~$600,000). Or it could be a unique plot of digital land in a virtual game. Or it could be a pack of rare digital collectible cards.

 

So how do I get to own the original? If you buy it (via a direct sale, or auction, or on a secondary market), your ownership is recorded on a shared ledger and stored on a blockchain. Essentially, that’s new technology that creates a public record that is permanent and cannot be altered or erased. It serves as a kind of certificate of authenticity telling you that the NFT is unique, and who owns it (which could be you).

 

Why is this important? Because they’re unique digital assets, NFTs can be bought, sold, auctioned and traded electronically, with their value determined by their popularity or scarcity, and all the while, their authenticity is ensured