Now that we are well into the era of the Internet, countless technologies have been developed to form new ways to accomplish virtually anything. There is a digital version of everything, and even things that aren’t digital can be seen, accessed, or ordered via the Internet. One thing that the Internet has changed deeply is the world of investments. Not only has it provided a way for people to make investments with more knowledge, but it has also given them new things to invest in. During the latter half of the 2010s, cryptocurrency had made a big rise through currencies that people would invest in such as Bitcoin and Etherium. Now, a new product is emerging based on the foundation built by cryptocurrency: Non-fungible tokens (NFTs). However, people are just as skeptical now of NFTs as people were when Bitcoin was first being talked about. Opinions vary greatly online, as well as among North Atlanta students.

NFTs, which are backed by Etherium, are easily reproducible items such as photos, videos, audio, and other types of digital files. They use blockchain technology to give the item a verified and public proof of authenticity as their item will be tokenized. There are prominent cases of NFTs through the use of digital artwork, which some have gone on record to sell for millions of dollars. However, many people don’t see why or how they could be worth so much. “It’s just a picture. You can literally copy and paste it, and boom you have the NFT,” said junior Ethan Halcomb.

While some students don’t see the value, other students think that NFTs create an interesting opportunity for investments into new, one-of-a-kind items that are unlike anything that’s been seen before. Whether there is a use for the NFT or not, being able to use common technology like pictures or videos to make massive amounts of money is something that can be taken advantage of. “It’s crazy that you can make so much money from something as simple as pictures or digital art. It’s exciting to see all the new ways to profit off the Internet,” said junior Samuel Cantrell. 

Although NFTs are growing rapidly in prominence and significance, some students don’t fully understand how they even work. NFTs are still a very new concept and are still in the early stages of their lifespan. It will take some time for them to become widely recognized, just as it did for cryptocurrency. “I know that people will pay millions of dollars for drawings because they’re NFTs, but I don’t understand why they are so expensive,” said junior Ali Carter.

NFTs are yet another example of technologies that have been developed with the use of the internet to open up a new world in terms of economic opportunity. They are still early on in their life cycle, but they are making a rise comparable to that of cryptocurrency. They have the potential to continue going up in value, and more people are buying into their appeal. That said, only the future will tell where they go and how they impact investors from here on out.