In New York City, the very first non-fungible token (NFT) office building has sold thanks to the growing demand for metaverse land.
This 4,700 square meter NFT is located at 44 West 37th Street, and it is designed to support the monetization and authentication of the building's digital assets. The building was recently acquired by New York real estate developer Azul NYC.
This 16-story structure makes us rethink the role that architecture plays in real estate and the metaverse. It was designed by Integrated Projects, which announced the sale at the beginning of September. Moreover, the 44W37 NFT was minted on the decentralized, open-source blockchain Ethereum (ETH).
Jose Cruz Jr, the Founder of Integrated Projects, Integrated Projects said:
“NFTs are not new. 3D scans of buildings are not new…what’s new is the merging of these technologies with blockchain utility, enabling building owners to create, own, transact, and monetize their digital assets—similar to how we do so with our physical assets.”
Digital assets can now be created, owned, transacted, and monetized without the hassle of having to transfer ownership from one owner to another. Instead of selling or buying tangible property, one sells or purchases images, 3D scans, plans, virtual tours, and location reports.
NFTs streamline the transaction process, allowing buyers to acquire real estate within a short period of time. There is potential for NFTs to establish stringent ownership laws not only in the realm of real estate but also in the realm of intellectual property. It could be the start of a new era in architecture and real estate in megacities like New York.
“The digital transformation of commercial real estate is going to fundamentally change how we design, build, operate and monetize our spaces,” says Jack Ezon, Principal of Azul NYC, “this is still day one.”
"The City of New York is the Rosetta Stone of the 20th century", according to Rem Koolhaas in his book Delirious New York. The "44W37" represents the beginning of a new era in architecture and real estate in megacities, as did many skyscrapers in Manhattan. A 3D NFT Villa opened in MetaMundo's Metaverse, which also calls into question how architecture fits into the Metaverse. In his opinion, the potential for designing for the metaverse and harnessing its capabilities is almost limitless, as Rashed Singaby, senior project designer at HOK, explained, and Leon Rost, director of BIG, considers architecture as a Metaverse, where "structure, materiality, and cost go out the window."
It is noteworthy that Finbold reported last year that Bitcoin (BTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Ethereum (ETH) could now be used to buy or sell real estate in New York City, thus marking the next stage of growth in the city as interest in virtual property grows.
