As we ring-in the year, 2022, there is a lot going on, on Planet Earth. A Lot. Amongst the a-lot-of-ness going on right now, one would be hard-pressed to ignore the meteoric- ( some would say speculative- ) rise of Non Fungible Tokens — NFTs as we affectionately call them in the fin-tech space.

While a substantial amount has already been written about NFTs, this short and exploratory “article” seeks to introduce a creative way of imagining NFTs by taking them out of their current categorization of tokenized assets ( i.e. existing exclusively to serve as exchange and tracking mechanisms for rare and marketable assets).

Instead of thinking ( read: obsessing ) about digital, bored apes, I am asking you to imagine an exceptional city in the far-flung future: the year is 2024 (because with all the alot-of-ness happening in the present, even 2024 feels like the far-flung future…) and the city is New York City ( obviously ).

Below we will review a master use-case in its entirety, albeit we will do it in an expeditious manner. First, the important stuff:

(1) The goal of this ( very ) high-level walkthrough of the master use-case is to shed the light on NFTs as “instruments of finance”, rather than elaborate on how they are currently framed as financial instruments.

(2) The below master use case is my own personal, innovative, and creative ideation based on my work with the underlying technologies ( e.g. crypto, smart contracts, etc … )

(3) This walk-through is brief by design, and should be relatively easy to follow along.

(4) This written ideation is by no means a road-map to implementation, but rather a fun and curious speculation on what the future may hold.

Let’s get started.

Master Use Case: New York City has widely adopted the use of NFTs in order to help manage and distribute some of the perks that come with being a New Yorker. The new slogan for their NFT programme is, “8 Million New Yorkers. NFTs for all of us!” The city has released the following graphic to facilitate programme adoption by New Yorkers.

In the above graphic we encounter a couple of scenarios were a, previously verified, user has access to a city sponsored dApp, and funded crypto wallet. The dApp allows the user to buy a tiered travel package at a give price-point; based on what package the user selects, they are awarded certain perks. All of this information is stored in a smart-contract and on the block chain.

What makes this NFT unique is that the underlying assets are the value of the transportation package and the associated perks. A draw-down on both, the package value and any available perks, is recorded with each usage ( i.e. when the user rides the subway the value of the package is drawn on and thus decreases; the same is true when the user claims or transfers a perk ). Perks may expire if not used, and both the balance of the package and perks are transferable to another verified user. (It’s important to note here that user verification and onboarding ( or KYC as we affectionately refer to it in certain circles ) needs to be both timely, efficient, accurate, intuitive, and have the proper mechanisms in place to guarantee user data security — phew!

“What is the purpose of this approach?” You ask. “This just seems like another speculative waste of technology and resources”, you say? Well, that’s one way to look at it, and perhaps it is wasteful from the perspective of the moment that this little article is being written. However, I ask you to look at an even more outrageously far-flung future: the third quarter of 2024.

Let’s imagine that by this time the city of New York has successfully adopted the above model via the leveraging of their already existing NYS Excelsior Pass and the fruits of this good decision are already being seen. What can some of these benefits look like? — Glad you asked:

(a) The early adoption of crypto-hybrid smart contracts by city residents and eligible visitors, via already existing technology infrastructure

(b) The development of a sustainable micro-economy relevant to what the city and state can produce and based on the needs of its people and businesses

(c) An upgrade on the coolness factor of the city — as if we needed it — by serving as a master model for a sustainable, distribution platform for the “e-conomy” of the Americas.

Thanks for reading and happy to hear your thoughts!

As we ring-in the year, 2022, there is a lot going on, on Planet Earth. A Lot. Amongst the a-lot-of-ness going on right now, one would be hard-pressed to ignore the meteoric- ( some would say speculative- ) rise of Non Fungible Tokens — NFTs as we affectionately call them in the fin-tech space.

While a substantial amount has already been written about NFTs, this short and exploratory “article” seeks to introduce a creative way of imagining NFTs by taking them out of their current categorization of tokenized assets ( i.e. existing exclusively to serve as exchange and tracking mechanisms for rare and marketable assets).

Instead of thinking ( read: obsessing ) about digital, bored apes, I am asking you to imagine an exceptional city in the far-flung future: the year is 2024 (because with all the alot-of-ness happening in the present, even 2024 feels like the far-flung future…) and the city is New York City ( obviously ).

Below we will review a master use-case in its entirety, albeit we will do it in an expeditious manner. First, the important stuff:

(1) The goal of this ( very ) high-level walkthrough of the master use-case is to shed the light on NFTs as “instruments of finance”, rather than elaborate on how they are currently framed as financial instruments.

(2) The below master use case is my own personal, innovative, and creative ideation based on my work with the underlying technologies ( e.g. crypto, smart contracts, etc … )

(3) This walk-through is brief by design, and should be relatively easy to follow along.

(4) This written ideation is by no means a road-map to implementation, but rather a fun and curious speculation on what the future may hold.

Let’s get started.

Master Use Case: New York City has widely adopted the use of NFTs in order to help manage and distribute some of the perks that come with being a New Yorker. The new slogan for their NFT programme is, “8 Million New Yorkers. NFTs for all of us!” The city has released the following graphic to facilitate programme adoption by New Yorkers.

In the above graphic we encounter a couple of scenarios were a, previously verified, user has access to a city sponsored dApp, and funded crypto wallet. The dApp allows the user to buy a tiered travel package at a give price-point; based on what package the user selects, they are awarded certain perks. All of this information is stored in a smart-contract and on the block chain.

What makes this NFT unique is that the underlying assets are the value of the transportation package and the associated perks. A draw-down on both, the package value and any available perks, is recorded with each usage ( i.e. when the user rides the subway the value of the package is drawn on and thus decreases; the same is true when the user claims or transfers a perk ). Perks may expire if not used, and both the balance of the package and perks are transferable to another verified user. (It’s important to note here that user verification and onboarding ( or KYC as we affectionately refer to it in certain circles ) needs to be both timely, efficient, accurate, intuitive, and have the proper mechanisms in place to guarantee user data security — phew!

“What is the purpose of this approach?” You ask. “This just seems like another speculative waste of technology and resources”, you say? Well, that’s one way to look at it, and perhaps it is wasteful from the perspective of the moment that this little article is being written. However, I ask you to look at an even more outrageously far-flung future: the third quarter of 2024.

Let’s imagine that by this time the city of New York has successfully adopted the above model via the leveraging of their already existing NYS Excelsior Pass and the fruits of this good decision are already being seen. What can some of these benefits look like? — Glad you asked:

(a) The early adoption of crypto-hybrid smart contracts by city residents and eligible visitors, via already existing technology infrastructure

(b) The development of a sustainable micro-economy relevant to what the city and state can produce and based on the needs of its people and businesses

(c) An upgrade on the coolness factor of the city — as if we needed it — by serving as a master model for a sustainable, distribution platform for the “e-conomy” of the Americas.

Thanks for reading and happy to hear your thoughts!