RTFKT, a non-fungible sneaker studio, has been acquired by Nike.

Nike announced today the acquisition of RTFKT, a virtual sneaker design firm as well as a studio for non-fungible tokens.

RTFKT was created in 2020 with the goal of creating virtual shoe designs for usage in online games and, more recently, the Metaverse. Before going into NFT designs last year, the business produced designs for game companies and fashion designers.

According to the group’s OpenSea website, RTFKT has 561 NFTs in its own collection and has developed at least 1000 more. Its most prominent series is a collection of virtual shoes based on CryptoPunks, one of which sold today for 3.2 ETH (more than $12,000).

According to Nike President and CEO John Donahoe, the acquisition is part of the company’s efforts to interact with digital culture. He stated that the purchase will provide Nike with a “talented team of creators with an authentic and connected brand.”

RTFKT stated:

“NIKE is the only brand in the world we always looked up to and got inspired by when starting RTFKT,”

Nike filed patents in November for technology that looked to be connected to non-fungible coins. In December 2019, it also started working on another NFT project dubbed “CryptoKicks.” It’s unclear whether today’s announcement has anything to do with these previous attempts.

Nonetheless, the timing of the announcement, together with the closely synchronized ambitions of each organization, implies that RTFKT intends to make some of Nike’s most recent patents a reality.

Nike is only one of numerous prominent corporations interested in NFTs. Others include Adidas, as well as more distant corporations such as Ubisoft, Facebook, Time Magazine, and Visa.

Patrick

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