The Italian car manufacturer Alfa Romeo announced the company's first blockchain-certified vehicle using non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The NFT will generate a certificate that could be used to verify that the car has been serviced correctly, leading to a potentially higher resale value.
The new elecric hybrid SUV, according to Italy’s auto manufacturer, will be the industry’s first vehicle that will include an NFT and blockchain technology. Each Tonale SUV will be linked to a non-removable token that certifies the vehicle’s data on the blockchain.
“Digitization is a key factor in enabling our metamorphosis. The Tonale is the first car ever to have a blockchain-based non-removable token. NFTs are based on the same distributed information logic that protects your bitcoin. It saves all data on the blockchain.” - Francesco Calcara, Alfa Romeo’s Head of Global Marketing and Communications
The benefits will become apparent on resale as the NFT will generate a certificate that could be used to verify that the car has been serviced correctly, leading to a potentially higher resale value.
Alfa Romeo joining other brands
The Tonale, like its big brother the Stelvio, is named after a famous Italian mountain pass and will be available in two electrified versions – a mild hybrid and a plug-in hybrid. According to Larry Dominique, the head of Tonale’s North American operations, the new vehicle will serve as the end of all of Alfa Romeo vehicles that contain a traditional internal combustion engine. By 2027, Stellantis, which owns Alfa Romeo, says it hopes to exclusively sell electric vehicles.
The 110-year-old auto manufacturer joins other competing brands that have already entered the world of NFTs. Last month, in collaboration with artist Fabian Oefner, Lamborghini launched the Space Time Memory project, comprising five pairs of both physical and digital art. And Italian supercar rival Ferrari recently announced a multi-year partnership with Swiss tech firm Velas Network AG to develop NFT content for the brand. The partnership opens the doors to a whole new user base for the tech firm.
