“How do we get even closer to the user? The largest distribution platform in the world is the mobile phone” (Arjun Kalsy, Polygon VP Growth)
Following Solana’s announcement of their future Saga Android phone running on their customized mobile platform, another blockchain heavyweight is going mobile.
Polygon has partnered with phone-maker Nothing to give ‘Black Dot’ NFTs to early adopters of the new smartphone. The plan is to later bring Polygon’s ecosystem of NFTs and web3 apps and games to their smartphones.
As other blockchains build their own phones a la Solana, or partner with phone makers as Polygon has done, we could see an exciting new phase of web3 adoption. Watch this space.
The trend of mobile-native and enabled services incorporating NFT and other web3 layers to their offerings shows no sign of abatement.
Following Instagram’s support for NFTs, parent company Meta is also trialling the technology by allowing NFTs to be posted and tagged with a test group of creators.
Future plans include AR NFT support for Instagram stories and adopting sustainable energy to reduce the emissions impact of such technologies.
Why Web3?
If you needed a reminder of why web3’s decentralized and data sovereignty principles are so important, centralized entity Coinbase is reportedly selling their users’ geolocation and transaction data to the much-maligned U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE).
Can’t wait for the Coinbase x U.S. ICE collab’s first NFT drop.
This follows on from their previous acquisition in 2019 of Neutrino, which had been linked to malware surveillance software that was sold to authoritarian regimes around the world.
These new revelations are sure to reignite the #DeleteCoinbase movement, which had previously succeeded in pressuring Coinbase to address its concerns.
Jack Poulsen from watchdog Tech Inquiry speaks to Coindesk about Coinbase’s ICE deal: https://www.coindesk.com/business/2022/06/29/coinbase-is-reportedly-selling-geo-location-data-to-ice/
Bitcoin Magazine shared further details and financials of the controversial Coinbase Neutrino deal: https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/coinbase-purchased-neutrino-135-m-acquisition-contract-shows
Review written by Quoc Nguyen
