NEW DELHI: Online travel company MakeMyTrip has launched limited edition non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The artwork for these NFTs, the company said, has been conceptualised and designed to commemorate some of the popular as well as the unexplored travel gems of India. This will give travellers a chance to own digital collectibles of their favorite destinations, the company said. The first batch of these artworks will have the landscapes of Goa, Ladakh, Orissa, Himachal, Kashmir, Kerala, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, and Andamans in them.
The Nasdaq-listed company said the artworks had been designed using advanced AI Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs), a tool that is uploaded with several images which depicts realistic images. The artworks are conceptualised by AI Bots, an online community of digital artists.
The limited-edition artwork will present a meta-world view of the explored and the relatively lesser explored destinations in the country. For instance, the NFT on Goa captures the incredible natural beauty of its beaches while highlighting the less frequented tourist spots including Pandava Cave, Basilica of Bom Jesus, Dudhsagar Falls and the splendid Fort Tiracol, among others.
This collection of NFTs can be accessed through its app and website. The company has launched 25 tokens for each artwork. These works have been minted on Polygon Blockchain, a leading platform for Ethereum scaling and infrastructure development and are available via NgageN, platform provided by blockchain company KoineArth's.
"The NFTs are a confluence of new-age technology with the world of travel as it captures the beauty of some of the exotic locations of India. We are offering travel enthusiasts a never before chance to be owners of this beauty in the digital domain," said Sunil Suresh the group's chief marketing officer.
Praphul Chandra, founder of KoineArth, said, "With the launch of their NFTs, Indians around the world can digitally own the beauty of India, make it part of their personal legacy and even gift it to their loved ones. The artwork of NFTs are a great example of how brands-with-a-purpose are working with digital artists to create art that captures their spirit."
The company said it will pass on the proceeds from the sale of these NFTs to support projects focusing on promoting sustainable tourism in the country.
The global metaverse market size reached $47.69 billion in 2020 and is expected to register a revenue CAGR of 43.3% during the forecast period, according to analysis by Emergen Research. By 2028, this figure is expected to touch $828.95 billion.