It's hard to profit off virtual commodities that can be copied and pasted with just a few keystrokes, but Bladon said blockchain technology has given rise to a new phenomenon in e-commerce - 'digital scarcity.'īlockchains can set limits on how many and what types of CryptoKitties are in circulation.

One CryptoKitty was purchased for US$140,000 at a charity auction in May, and others have garnered similarly eye-popping sales in the cryptocurrency ether. 'Ironically, (we're trying) to be the next Bitcoin by showing that there is a use for this technology beyond Bitcoin.'Ī run-of-the-mill virtual kitten costs only a few dollars, but CryptoKitties of special pedigree can have exorbitant price tags. This, Bladon said, is what makes CryptoKitties distinct from a cryptocurrency and instead a 'digital product.' When two felines breed, new characteristics - or in the game's parlance, 'cattributes' - can be unlocked through the genetic lottery. When a CryptoKitty changes hands, the exchange is logged by the blockchain, a digital ledger of transactions that is shared among a network of computers.Įvery CryptoKitty is encoded with a one-of-a-kind token, which like its digital DNA, determines its heritable traits.

The result is a virtual game that CryptoKitties, which spun off into its own company in March, has compared to breedable Beanie Babies on the blockchain - collectibles that can be bought, sold and 'sired' on the Ethereum network. 'Let's put cats on the blockchain,' Bladon recalled a fellow CryptoKitties co-founder saying.Īnd that, more or less, is what they did. VANCOUVER - At first glance, CryptoKitties are googly-eyed virtual cats that come in an array of fanciful forms - from fluffy ninjas, to feline-duck hybrids.īut don't underestimate these collectible critters, because some CryptoKitties have commanded six figures on the virtual market, and the B.C.-based company behind the project says it's attracted more than US$12 million in investments.Īnd depending on whom you ask, the blockchain-based game is either a sign of where the digital economy is heading, or just another crypto-craze fuelled by the internet's cat obsession.įor Vancouver-based developer Axiom Zen, it all began with a simple idea, said CryptoKitties communications director Bryce Bladon.

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