VANCOUVER: CryptoKitties, which lays claim to being the world’s first and most successful consumer product built on blockchain technology, has partnered with AppMoji and Stephen Curry to bring sports memorabilia to the blockchain.
Curry will put the first of his three special-edition CryptoKitties up for auction Monday, incidentally one of the first examples of sports’ collectibles on the blockchain.
A special landing page on the CryptoKitties site (cryptokitties.co/stephen-curry) provides a direct link to the auction, a look at all three exclusive “CurryKitties”, and a giveaway for 10 CryptoKitties.
The “cats” are a nod to Curry’s interests both on and off the court. “Stephen is the perfect partner to try out this new kind of Kitty,” said Mack Flavelle, co-founder of CryptoKitties. “He’s an incredible athlete, but also has a deep interest in technology and innovation.”
Curry, who is active in the tech world, is the first-ever athlete to partner with a blockchain-based game, through his involvement with Moji (AppMoji, Inc.).
Partnering with a prominent athlete like Curry, who also happens to play near Silicon Valley, will expand crypto gaming and collectibles beyond the existing market, the game’s creators believe. The digitization of sporting-related assets, such as trading cards, has already begun. The true ownership fulfilled by blockchain — and the technology’s ability to quantify tractable value between fans and influencers like Curry — is a logical next step.
CryptoKitties is the Ethereum network’s largest blockchain game, responsible for over a quarter of the network’s traffic during its peak. Unlike cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or ether, CryptoKitties are cryptocollectibles that secure ownership of digital art via blockchain technology.
Since launching in late 2017, the game has acquired hundreds of thousands of players and conducted millions in transactions.
It was in March that CryptoKitties announced $12 million in funding led by venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz and Union Square Ventures, both of which have also backed companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Coinbase.
