Meta’s NFT testing being expanded to Instagram Stories: In a message to artists on Wednesday, Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg said that Facebook, the company behind Instagram and Facebook, would start testing its augmented reality technology, Spark AR, to show non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on Instagram Stories.
In addition to extending the test population for the NFT display option, Meta intends to introduce the NFT display to Facebook, “beginning with a limited set of US artists,” after releasing an early test of the option on Instagram back in May.
In a Facebook post, Zuckerberg discussed the addition of NFTs to Meta’s applications and said, “We’re extending our test so more artists across the globe may exhibit their NFTs on Instagram.” The business said in a statement that “once we start rolling out the capability on Facebook with select US artists at a later date,” “creators and collectors will be able to share their digital treasures across Facebook and Instagram.”
In a video posted in May, Zuckerberg said that the Meta team has started working on integrating digital collectibles for its metaverse and Reality Labs initiative, as well as throughout the company’s family of applications. Zuckerberg had initially suggested the integration of NFTs on Instagram back in March.
Zuckerberg had previously announced in May that users who are a part of the test group would be able to post NFTs for free by connecting their external digital wallets in-app. The NFTs will have a unique “shimmer” surrounding the image that includes credit for both the photographer and the owner.
A business representative told The Block that the functionality supports the blockchain networks Ethereum and Polygon, with Flo wand Solana releasing shortly. Rainbow, MetaMask, Trust Wallet, Coinbase, Dapper, and Phantom, are among the third-party wallets that will work with the platform.
This week, Meta also said it would collaborate with other tech firms to establish a metaverse standards organization. The group’s goals include creating Web 3 and the metaverse and creating the next iteration of the web.
Adobe, Epic Games, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Qualcomm are a few businesses that have joined the campaign; Apple was conspicuously absent.
