By
John K. Kumi
March 1st, 2021
Chevrolet is not the first automaker to plan an NFT auction. It follows other market leaders like Hyundai, McLaren and Lamborghini.
The leading automaker, Chevrolet, has announced its readiness to auction a mint green Corvette Z06 NFT. The NFT artwork features a mint green Chevy speeding through a Cyberpunk landscape. Artist Nick Sullo, otherwise known as xsullo, designed the artwork. The NFT auction will take place on Super Rare between June 20 and 24.
According to Chevy, the winning bidder at the NFT auction will also get an actual sports car, a Chevy Corvette inspired by Sullo’s design. The Chevy will be sold as a 2023 model since it doesn’t go into production until summer. Chevy plans to donate all proceeds from the auction to an education charity, DonorsChoose.
The NFT-paired Chevrolet will be unique to the highest bidder. Chevy is vowing not to paint any other Z06 with that color. Moreover, the car will bear the option code RFN, associating it with the NFT auction. Its VIN will also appear in binary since it links to an NFT.
The Chevy is task-focused compared to its predecessors. It will be the first Vette to ‘feature a naturally aspirated 5.5-liter V-8 mid-engine, located directly behind the driver.’
Automakers Dive into Web3
Chevrolet is not the first automaker to plan an NFT auction. It follows other market leaders like Hyundai, McLaren and Lamborghini. It was Lamborghini that launched a carbon fibre space key in January. Also, Toyota and Nissan are both set to venture into the metaverse with their NFT offerings.
Interestingly, Chevy’s venture into NFTs comes when the entire cryptocurrency market is extremely volatile. Before now, NFTs provided a haven for investors insuring against the volatility. However, NFT floor prices have also been affected.
Most recently, the NFT floor price of a BAYC NFT crashed from an all-time high of $429,000 in April to less than $100,000. This decline represents a loss in value of over 75%. However, Chevrolet seems unfazed by the prevailing market conditions.
According to the vice president of marketing at Chevrolet, Steve Majoros, the company needs to get into new territories to stay cutting edge. “We see ‘Own the Color’ as an important stepping stone for Chevrolet into future digital initiatives for our customers,” he stated.
