NFTs have been a big topic of conversation on social media for the past few months. No matter where you land when asking about their meaning, there’s no denying how popular they’ve become.
Twitter Launches A Tool That Display (NFTs) As Profile Pictures
According to an announcement on January 20, Twitter announced the launch of a tool that would allow users to display non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as their profile pictures to capitalize on the craze for digital collectibles that has exploded over the past year.
The feature is available on iOS for users of the company’s Twitter Blue subscription service and connects their Twitter account to the user’s crypto wallet, where NFT assets are stored.
Twitter displays NFT profile pictures as hexagons to distinguish them from the standard circles available to other users. Clicking on the image will reveal detailed information about the artwork and its ownership.
Like other tech companies, Twitter is keen to capitalize on crypto trends like NFTs, a speculative asset used to verify digital assets like images, videos, and land in virtual worlds.
How to Set an NFT as your Profile Picture on Twitter
- Go to your Twitter profile (on an iOS device with an active Twitter Blue subscription).
- Tap Edit Profile then tap to change your profile picture.
- Rather than choosing an image, select ‘Choose NFT.’
- Connect your crypto wallet to your Twitter account.
- Select the desired NFT to get your hexagon-shaped profile picture.
The social media platform last year added the ability for users to send and receive bitcoin.
According to market tracker DappRadar, sales of NFTs will reach about $25 billion in 2021, although there are signs of a slowdown in growth towards the end of the year.
Proponents of “Web3” technologies like NFTs say they spread ownership online and create a way for users to monetize popular creations, rather than largely attributing those benefits to a handful of technology platforms.
Critics dismissed claims of decentralization, noting that many of the services driving adoption of these technologies — like the six crypto wallets powered by Twitter’s NFT product — are backed by a small group of venture capitalists.
In a tweet that went viral after launch, security researcher Jane Manchun Wong highlighted one of the links, showing how the outage of venture-funded NFT marketplace OpenSea temporarily prevented NFTs from loading on Twitter. OpenSea did not immediately respond to any request for comment.
