Twitter Debuts Hexagon 2c1t4n Shaped NFT Profile Pictures

Twitter displays the NFT profile pictures as hexagons, differentiating them from the standard circles available to other s. 2z3pk

By Reuters | Updated: 21 January 2022 10:04 IST

Twitter last year added functionality for s to send and receive Bitcoin 535r

Highlights

Proponents of Web3 tech like NFTs say they decentralise ownership online
Sales of NFTs reached some $25 billion (roughly Rs. 1,86,250 crore)
Critics dismiss the decentralisation claims

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Twitter on Thursday announced the launch of a tool through which s can showcase non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as their profile pictures, tapping into a digital collectibles craze that has exploded over the past year.

The feature, available on NFT holdings.

Twitter displays the NFT profile pictures as hexagons, differentiating them from the standard circles available to other s. Tapping on the pictures prompts details about the art and its ownership to appear.

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Like other tech companies, Twitter is rushing to cash in on crypto trends like NFTs, a type of speculative asset authenticating digital items such as images, videos, and land in virtual worlds.

The social media platform last year added functionality for s to send and receive Bitcoin.

Sales of NFTs reached some $25 billion (roughly Rs. 1,86,250 crore) in 2021, according to data from market tracker DappRadar, although there were signs of growth slowing toward the end of the year.

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Proponents of Web3 technologies like NFTs say they decentralise ownership online, creating a path for s to earn money from popular creations, rather than having those benefits accrue primarily to a handful of tech platforms.

Critics dismiss the decentralisation claims, noting that many of the services powering adoption of those technologies - like the six crypto wallets ed by Twitter's NFT product - are backed by a small group of venture capitalists.

In a widely circulated tweet after the launch, security researcher Jane Manchun Wong highlighted one of those links, showing how an outage at venture-backed NFT marketplace OpenSea temporarily blocked NFTs from loading on Twitter.

OpenSea did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment.

© Thomson Reuters 2022

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