Taco Bell Hops On Digital Asset Train

Taco Bell Corp. has joined singer Billie Eilish and Twitter founder Jack Dorsey into the non-fungible token world.
 
The question now, will the Irvine-based restaurant chain’s digital taco art be just as popular as the ones it makes and sells in real life?  

Based on sell-through of its NFTs and the fact that the first collection of 25 tokens sold out in less than an hour, the answer would seem to be yes.  

To take a step back, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are digital assets sold through a marketplace. In Taco Bell’s case, that marketplace would be Rarible.
 
NFTs are authenticated and made unique using blockchain.
 
So, something such as $20 will always be worth $20 regardless of the serial number affixed on any given bill. However, a Taco Bell taco gif NFT will bear a specific code on the blockchain that makes it the one and only of that particular version of the gif and, thus, its own unique value.
 
For Taco Bell, it’s not looking for another revenue source, but selling taco-themed NFTs is a way of staying a part of, and participating in, the cultural conversation.
 
It’s also philanthropic, with all proceeds from the sale of its art going to the Taco Bell Foundation.
 
So why are NFTs such a thing right now? Some view them as an investment. Some see it as one future direction of e-commerce. Others think they’re just plain fun.
 
There’s definitely real money at play: a JPEG collage containing thousands of digital illustrations from the artist Beeple (née Mike Winkelmann) just went for $69 million at a Christie’s auction this month and Dorsey’s first-ever tweet, made into an NFT, has a current bid of $2.5 million.