#257: Art Basel 2023 Recap

PLUS: 🚗 FIAT launches their CINQUECENTO Collection

Dec 13, 2023

FIAT launches CINQUECENTO

At this point in the web3 and NFT adoption arc, many auto brands have already entered the space or are actively planning for it.

The efforts are currently focused on digital art and digital collectibles (eg: Mercedes-Benz NXT) or a combination of collectibles and giveaways (McLaren), but deep down we know there’s a lot more that can (and will!) be done at the intersection of the auto industry and blockchain on the consumer front.

That’s where FIAT and their approach come in. I had the opportunity to connect with Elliot Garreffa, co-founder of Web3 Audience, and learn more about what FIAT is up to with their push into the web3 space.

On top of that, this was timely because my wife just purchased a new car, so cars have been top of mind for me. I still drive an old beater so I’m next, *cough* hook it up FIAT *cough* jk 😉

FIAT Pass

FIAT’s efforts started with the FIAT Pass, a membership and loyalty pass for the FIAT ecosystem. The collection has a supply of 55,000 soulbound NFTs that act as a ‘social VIN’ (vehicle identification number), which complements the concept of a NFT from the non-fungibility POV.

The collection was minted on Arbitrum, an ETH L2, allowing the team to airdrop the passes at a low cost. The Pass is dynamic, updating as the holder participates in the FIAT ecosystem in different ways and unlocking various physical and digital rewards over time.

Considering the recent experience I had accompanying my wife on her car purchase journey, loyalty passes makes sense. What was her car ownership history like? (I hope you don’t mind me sharing A. I like to live my newlywed life on the edge I guess 🤪)

Owned a Mazda for 10+ years
When thinking about a new car over the past 6-12 months, was considering other brands, specifically Acura
Ultimately went with Mazda for more practical reasons

What did she get for being a loyal Mazda owner for 10+ years? A $500 loyalty discount on the new car.

It’s better than nothing, I get it. But in hindsight, $500 doesn’t sound that compelling. If my wife was interacting with auto brands in more unique and engaging ways, would that have swayed her decision? Possibly. It definitely would’ve swayed mine to some degree, as I’m a free agent in the world of cars.

So with FIAT Pass, what do I see as the strategy:

Provides brand awareness at minimum, with the potential to sway holders when they’re at the point of considering a new car purchase. More interesting than the saturated strategy of running a bunch of ads on TV.
Complementing a younger audience that is digitally native
Creates an opportunity for persistent touchpoints with an audience and the opportunity for deeper engagement

And this is for the first phase of the launch. There will likely be more unique activations that will roll out that could be exclusive to FIAT Pass holders, or those that reached a certain level of engagement or loyalty.

CINQUECENTO

Last week, FIAT launched the CINQUECENTO collection, which coincided with FIAT’s (500e)ᴿᴱᴰ launch in the US. Fun fact, CINQUECENTO = ‘500’ in Italian.

This collection has a max 10k supply and is priced at $145, or 0.067 ETH. As mentioned earlier, this isn’t just a digital collectible, what do holders get if they purchase this?

Priority access to order the (500e)ᴿᴱᴰ (up to $500 in value)
Generative digital art from Stefano Contiero, a respected digital artist who has had multiple Art Blocks releases
Free2move mobility credit (up to $180 in value)
Priority access to future vehicle releases (up to $500 in value)
The first 1,000 minters receive a free mint for the next FIAT Pass collection mint
The first 4,000 minters will be upgraded to the next FIAT Pass loyalty tier: FIAT Pass Plus

From a value perspective, FIAT is showing the value they could provide on multiple fronts. You might purchase for the priority access, and see the digital art as a bonus, or maybe you don’t value it at all (which would be unfortunate).

You may care more about getting a free mint and increasing your loyalty tier even if you don’t plan on owning a FIAT anytime soon.

FIAT is approaching collection mints with a 1-to-many value prop strategy. There’s a suitable perk for everyone.

Putting the FIAT Pass + CINQUECENTO strategy together

FIAT and Web3 Audience’s strategy for this rollout provides us insight into where things are headed for auto brands and their entrance into the web3 space:

Auto brands are exploring novel ways to connect and engage: Regardless of where a FIAT Pass holder is on their car ownership journey, this is another touchpoint that provides an opportunity to go much deeper than a TV ad can.

Loyalty is a green space in the auto industry: The car purchase journey is significantly longer and more complex compared to deciding where to purchase coffee or which airline to fly with. Coffee purchases are made multiple times a week or month, and flight purchases happen multiple times a year.

Car purchases are a concentrated short game (days and weeks leading up to purchase) and a strategic long game (brand perception over the course of years).

NFTs are the add-ons of the future: In the case of physical-first products, one way to view NFTs is as a digital add-on that can translate into tangible physical or financial perks.

The CINQUECENTO benefits are just the beginning of what might be possible if auto manufacturers and dealerships collaborate to experiment with what might be possible.

Ok, the above example is ridiculous and ignores the financial and operational complexities between the manufacturer and dealership. But if you could verify and identify that a loyalty pass holder is a top fan of your auto brand short of purchasing the car, why wouldn’t you consider something (or at least a limited version) like the above?

FIAT is one brand in the portfolio: FIAT is owned by Stellantis, an auto group that owns 14 brands including Maserati, Jeep, Ram Trucks, Dodge, Chrysler, and more.

What if FIAT Pass is the first step of many to build a larger loyalty program that encourages a car owner to stay within the family of brands? If I used to drive a Dodge but am looking for another car that isn’t a Dodge, how could I be encouraged to make my next car purchase be a Stellantis one?

I imagine FIAT’s web3 learnings will be shared with its sister brands as they eye the web3 space and think through cross-promotional network effects that are more easily unlocked digitally.

CINQUECENTO roadmap: The CINQUECENTO NFT is not just a collectible that contains a suite of perks.

#5 in the roadmap is particularly interesting to me:

CINQUECENTO holders get car connected benefits in the US & Europe.

Hypothetically, these “car connected benefits” could range from practical to creative, and be tied to the FIAT Pass as well. Some hypothetical examples of what this could look like for a FIAT owner who also holds a FIAT Pass and CINQUECENTO:

Complimentary or discounted car maintenance services based on FIAT Pass loyalty level
Free access or dynamic discounts (based on loyalty level) to local events depending on where the user is located and drives to
Dynamic discounts (based on loyalty level) based on the connected wallet’s holdings

FIAT is just getting started and is showing what the auto space can do as they dive deeper into web3. If you want to dive deeper into what the team is doing, learn more about the FIAT Pass website here, or follow them on X.

Have you driven a car before? If so, share or subscribe!

Art Basel 2023 Recap

Last weekend I was in sunny Miami hanging out at Art Basel, an annual event focused on modern art.

Over the past few years, the digital art and NFT spaces have complemented the main event with a rich suite of side events of their own. I’ve been meaning to check the event out and this year I had the pleasure to attend!

Art Basel isn’t on the same end of the event spectrum as Consensus or ETH Denver. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t insights! After all, that’s why you’re here right? 😉

Themes and insights

Event Sponsorships and partnerships

My first day in Miami was focused on attending web3 side events, and I went to events hosted by DeGods, Rug Radio, and Pudgy Penguins. One prevailing theme with these events is the partnerships/sponsorships with the events.

DeGods: Kraken and Safe (not pictured but they had a themed bar in the DeGods house/mansion)

Rug Radio:

Pudgy Penguins:

In a vacuum, this observation isn't interesting. Of course these events would have sponsors! The open bar, venue rental, and food need to be paid for somehow and ideally not from the company’s funds.

What’s notable about these sponsorships compared to those at other industry conferences is that some of these sponsors would typically hold their own events. Because of the consumer/art/creative focus of Art Basel, these sponsors prioritized sponsoring someone else’s event instead of holding one on their own.

These companies understood the persona of the attendees of Art Basel and adjusted their strategy accordingly:

Sponsoring an event with a brand and community they are aligned with > Hosting an event themselves

Digital art hasn’t reached Art Basel proper (yet)

When I went to Art Basel at the Miami Convention Center on Sunday, I was hoping I would stumble across some digital art. Although I saw a lot of great art, digital art was few and far between.

All these booths and no booths or galleries focused on digital art?!

However, it might not be because digital art is boring, but rather the price of exhibiting at the event is tremendous:

So assuming prices are approximately the same since the price adjustments in 2019:

Small booth: $19,450
Large booth: $114,948

That doesn’t include shipping, insurance, taking clients out, and other operational costs. Or maybe there are other reasons for the lack of digital art that I’m unaware of. Maybe next year, one can dream…

Despite this, there was one piece (unfortunately didn’t check which gallery featured it) that caught my eye by Tom Sachs, a popular contemporary artist.

This may seem like a weird painting, but it’s actually based off a NFT collection: Tom Sachs Rocket Factory. TLDR of this collection:

Launched in August 2021 where participants minted different rocket parts (Cone, Body, Tail)
Each of these parts featured one of 30 brands including 7-Eleven, Snickers, USPS, NASA, Atari, Hello Kitty, etc.
Collectors that had one of each part could create a rocket. They could create Frankenrockets (parts consisting of different brands) or Perfect Rockets (parts are all the same brand)
Collectors had the opportunity to launch a toy model of their rocket IRL (image below was launched, which is why you see the tail exhaust, while the above shows it in an unlaunched state)

Here’s the NFT, named American Spirit.

The reason I know so much about this is because I was one of the original minters and this project helped provide some financial liquidity to explore the NFT ecosystem more deeply. Thank you Tom Sachs 🙂

Although there wasn’t much digital art at the convention floor, Solana held a special exhibit featuring digital art on the second floor.

The exhibit was titled Artists in Residence, a live studio that featured several digital artists creating digital art in live sessions. Visitors could also mint and collect editions of their artwork, which is a great way to introduce people to the world of digital art and ownership of it.

So maybe there is hope after all!

Outside of the convention center, one of Beeple’s pieces was featured at Faena Hotel (a screenshot doesn’t do it justice, you gotta watch the video).

And Trippy Labs had a great art exhibit called Beyond Basel, featured at Factory Town, which is a massive club/festival/party type of venue. Same as Beeple, you gotta watch the videos.

Pudgy Penguins is crushing it

Pudgy Penguins’ Pudgy World Alpha was one of the notable announcements from the NFT space during Art Basel. Imagine a modern version Club Penguin with globally loved IP — That’s what Pudgy World will be.

This was the largest announcement, which is exciting not only for the Pudgy Penguins community but for the broader web3 space.

However, that wasn’t what caught my eye. What I found fascinating was how the Pudgy Penguins team showcased the IP’s licensing potential throughout the event itself.

As large-scale figurines: These could easily be scaled down into toy figurines or plushies, but at this size, they could be perfect for a Pudgy Penguin theme park if there ever was one. The kids (and adults!) would go nuts.

As backdrops: Similar to the figurines, this could be scaled down to coloring books or connect-the-dot books. Or a setting to take pictures in.

As a wrapper for the Pudgy World arcade game: I don’t know if these will end up in arcades or if they’re just a concept. If they do, I’m confident they’ll be popular. It’s refreshingly different.

The arcade machines turned on and were playable after the Pudgy World Alpha announcement.

As a wrapper for a gelato stand: This one makes sense for obvious reasons.

So instead of just painting the vision about what licensing Pudgy Penguins IP could look like, the team is literally showing what it looks like in practical ways at their own event. Not to mention the toys, merch, and accessories that are already being sold.

This also explains why Luca Netz was so focused on having a presence at the Licensing Expo conference. He understands the broad brushstroke applicability of the Pudgy Penguins IP, and how + where it can be leveraged.

People I met

Chris: My partner in crime for the weekend. Appreciate you joining me at all these events and the random conversations. From Consensus to Art Basel, I’m sure there’ll be more events we attend together in the future

Shreyas: It was great to serendipitously bump into you at the DeGods event. You are living your best life in Miami 😎

Treats and the Raposa Coffee team: Thanks for sharing the story of Raposa Coffee. They’re a 10k collection and sell coffee on Amazon.

Kevin DeGods (CEO of Dust Labs, parent company of DeGods and y00ts): Thanks for sharing with me more insights about Dust Labs’ strategy and approach. It confirmed some thoughts that I had.

Tedium from the Mercedes-Benz NXT team: It was fun geeking out a bit with you regarding MB’s collections and approach. And sitting in a Maybach GLS600 (a $200k car) was pretty sweet too.

DJ from Travelswap: Thanks for giving me a water bottle (I had the choice of water or Capri Sun lol) while avoiding long lines at the bar during the Pudgy Penguins event. It was great learning more about TravelSwap and how it works!

Lena, Alice, Saigo, and Jorge: It was great hanging out in the morning after a long night out, and thanks to Lena for organizing! I have a lot more to learn about the Solana ecosystem.