Azuki Launches PBT Tokens, Linking Physical and Digital

On Monday, Azuki and Chiru Labs introduced the Physical Backed Token (or “PBT”), an open source token standard which ties a physical item to a digital token on the Ethereum blockchain. PBT enables brands and creators to create next-generation storytelling and experiences for their communities. Developers can begin building with PBT at pbt.io.

PBT sets the foundation for new experiences and storytelling. As a holder, you can build a collection that captures both the digital and physical worlds, trade authenticated items, or participate in real life quests. We can’t wait for you to see what we’ve been building on top of PBT. This is just the tip of the iceberg for the new types of experiences that are possible through this standard.

Use Cases Of PBTs

Azuki announced that PBTs have these initial use cases and beyond:

• Decentralized authentication of goods: Authenticate a physical item by simply scanning it with your phone.
• Tracking ownership lineage of physical goods: Verifiably prove the past and current owners of the item, enabling brands to build product experiences for their audiences.
• Using physical products to create digital experiences: Owning a digital token can unlock physical drops, and now owning a physical product can unlock digital experiences.

Scanning the chip with your phone allows for the PBT to be minted or digitally transferred to the owner’s wallet. This allows the current owner of a physical item to also own the PBT, which verifiably authenticates the item and ties the item to a digital token in the wallet of their choosing.

If the physical item gets sold or gifted to a new owner, the subsequent owner can then “scan-to-own” that same physical item, enabling decentralized transfer of the PBT from the previous owner to the new owner.