Porsche enters NFT space: A look at 3 other automotive giants that stepped into web3 this year

"The NFT artworks enable us to take our understanding of modern luxury and the unique brand positioning of Porsche into the digital world," said Detlev von Platen, a member of Porsche’s executive board for Sales and Marketing, in the official press release for the NFT collection.

However, Porsche is not the first automotive giant to enter the web3 race. Several heavyweights from the luxury passenger and sportscar segment   have already introduced their NFT collections or are currently working on their web3 projects. Here is a look at 3 automotive giants that jumped onto the NFT bandwagon in 2022.

When it comes to cars, Alfa Romeo is one of the A-listers in the market and enjoys a special place among car lovers. Earlier this year, the company released the Tonale, a compact electric-hybrid SUV. Along with unveiling this car, it also introduced a digital certificate that records vehicle data. With the  consent  of the  owner, Alfa Romeo would track and record running, maintenance and the various milestones of the car.

This is immensely helpful in the used-car market. It will allow buyers to get in-depth information about the vehicle, which will be stored safely on the blockchain. With NFTs, it is almost impossible to fabricate the stored data, and a car kept in reasonable condition should fetch a good price, thanks to its verified records.

The collection consists of 5 pairs of space-themed digital artworks of the Lamborghini Ultimae travelling through space while breaking down into its fundamental components. Bidders who won the NFTs in the auction received a physical “Space Key,” which the company had sent to the International Space Station in 2019.

The keys are made of carbon fibre and contain QR codes that link them to the digital artwork directly. And keeping with the space theme, the collection was put up for sale on February 1, the first day of the lunar calendar.

A few months later, Lamborghini announced its second NFT collection. After conquering space, this latest collection will feature Lamborghini’s iconic   vehicles set against some of the most legendary places on Earth.

The company has planned monthly collections of four pieces that will release over four days beginning Aug 8. The collection will culminate with one super-exclusive NFT, only available to users who collect all monthly releases.

The world-famous German car manufacturer Mercedes Benz also stepped forward to claim its spot in the NFT race. The company launched its first NFT collection in Jan this year, celebrating its iconic G-Class Series.

Mercedes roped in Art2People and the Crypto Art Collective to work on the project, and the brief was simple: pay homage to the iconic G-Class Series through unique digital artworks in the form of NFTs. The inspiration and theme for the artworks. The old-world craftsmanship of the G-Class.

To bring the project to life, the team commissioned leading artists from around the world, including Roger Kilimanjaro, Klarens Malluta, Antoni Tudisco, Charlotte Taylor & Anthony Authié and Baugasm.

Each artist comes from various backgrounds, including fashion, music, architecture, graphic design and luxury design. This allowed for the creation of unique, one-off digital artworks worthy of the G- Class series.

The NFT collection was launched on the Nifty Gateway and was on sale for an hour. The artworks were priced between $222 and a$1,554. The entire collection sold out almost immediately.