Kraken NFT’s Behind the Build: A Roadmap for the Future

Before you dive in, check out the first post in our Kraken NFT Behind the Build Series, The NFT Frontier and our second post, Kraken NFT’s Behind the Build: Global Ingenuity.

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NFTs go far beyond mere JPEGs. Kraken NFT is helping to establish the foundations of what’s to come for DeFi and the crypto space. 

This vision for the future means that eventually everything we own and sell will somehow be linked back to an NFT. NFTs have boundless possibilities in a multitude of markets. Whether you’re buying a a car, a house, a pair of shoes, or just some JPEGs, we believe everything will be tied to an NFT. 

Designing Kraken NFT

Kraken’s Design team wanted to celebrate the visual vibrancy of NFTs and bring that to life through its featured NFT artwork and customized Kraken illustrations. 

“People are really passionate about NFTs here,” said Jack Haslehurst, Kraken’s Senior Director of Product Design and Research. “Whether you’re an engineer, client engagement specialist, or a designer, we were getting suggestions and feedback from everyone across Kraken. There was excitement no matter what team they were on.”

Haslehurst has been at Kraken since September 2021. Before Kraken, Haslehurst worked in the design industry for 15 years including work as a senior design lead at IDEO.

Haslehurst is actually a big fan of NFTs. His favorites? Chromie Squiggles by Snowfro.

“It’s the original Art Blocks generative art collection that really created a new movement in art. Each one is uniquely beautiful and I truly see these as standing the test of time and being looked upon as very special pieces in the history of art in the future,” he said.

NFTs are also about collaboration and fun. Haslehurst pointed to CrypToadz as a standout example. 

“I love each unique toad and the fact that the creative commons opens up the collection to be remixed and shared,” he said. “Things like the Toadz glasses have become a meme on their own.”

With the NFT space evolving at incredible speed, Krakenites on the Design team have to keep up with the latest and greatest product enhancements.   

“When you’re designing visual products, sometimes things fail in crypto – the crypto industry is changing faster and innovating faster than almost any other,” Haslehurst said. “New projects launch quickly and the whole space changes. As a design team we have to keep on top of these trends and changes. We share everyday inspiration and work together on rapid iteration cycles to keep our products leading the market.”

“NFTs are no different here. We had to approach the design with love and careful thought to work well for those already invested in the world of NFTs whilst also being welcoming and educational to new investors,” he said.

In fact, the NFT marketplace announcement video included original NFT animations of the Kraken logo created by Krakenites.

Haslehurst saw the effort as a chance to grow and learn in an entirely new environment.

“We haven’t done anything of this scale,” he said. “For example, this launch film was something we wanted to do in house because we have an expansive team now of fantastic creators. With the marketplace, we have a fantastic team of creators and designers who each bring a unique aspect when designing a product of this scale.” 

With a growing team, including a research function in house, Kraken’s design department was able to understand client needs and how they impact the design of products. 

“Right now we have crypto-based natives using Kraken’s tools, but as we grow we also want to welcome more of the mass market of customers to experience and unlock the power of crypto,” said Haslehurst. “That means we need to develop an understanding of what our customers need by speaking to them and combining that knowledge with how we go about designing.”

Beyond the build

Kraken NFT is the first phase on a continuous roadmap that will keep evolving on the journey toward true Web3. 

To get there, a diversity of perspectives is necessary to give Kraken a realistic look at use cases for a global market. The future of crypto is unity and sharing. 

So where do we go from here?

Kraken NFT will offer a place where no matter where you are or who you are, you can be part of a digital economy. And our great team has had a hand in that mission every step of the way.

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These materials are for general information purposes only and are not investment advice or a recommendation or solicitation to buy, sell or hold any cryptoasset or to engage in any specific trading strategy. Some crypto products and markets are unregulated, and you may not be protected by government compensation and/or regulatory protection schemes. The unpredictable nature of the cryptoasset markets can lead to loss of funds. Tax may be payable on any return and/or on any increase in the value of your cryptoassets and you should seek independent advice on your taxation position. For more information, please see our Terms of Service.

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• Source: https://blog.kraken.com/post/17338/kraken-nfts-behind-the-build-a-roadmap-for-the-future/