What happened
Ever-volatile meme token Shiba Inu (CRYPTO: SHIB) experienced an upward swing in price on Thursday. Over the preceding 24 hours from mid-afternoon that day, the cryptocurrency had gained in excess of 4% in value. A new product announcement was the main catalyst for the rally.
So what
In a post on its official blog, Shiba Inu's developer revealed it was working on said product, Shibacals. This is a platform in which users can digitally authenticate physical items. Shibacals will be part of the Shibarium, the level 2 blockchain currently being developed by the Shiba Inu team.
Authentication will be effected in the "real" world by the use of a near field communication (NFC) chip. This technology also has the potential to be leveraged for other purposes, according to the Shiba Inu collective.
As developer Shytoshi Kusama explained in the blog post, "Our unique approach of digital authentication of physical items through an NFC chip, creation of the items in house, and blockchain transaction sets us apart and demonstrates just one use-case for Shibarium."
Kusama added that the NFC chips to be used in the Shibacal system have been created, tested, and sent to associates "for modeling purposes."
Now what
The Shibacal is an intruiging idea that certainly has potential for a clutch of different uses, both within and outside the world of collectibles. But the proof is in the pudding, as they say, and Shiba Inu's developers not only have to demonstrate good use cases for Shibacals, but the viability of the wider Shibarium ecosystem. That won't be easy, particularly given the many other cryptocurrency investments crowding the market.
