POKE Team August 8, 2022
Non-transferable Tokens, Soulbound Tokens, and the Future of Work
What are Non-Transferable Tokens or Soulbound Tokens?
By now, we’ve all come across NFTs with the rise of crypto and Web3. However, a concept that has yet to take off are NTTs. NTTs are similar to NFTs in that they consist of digital data stored in the blockchain. However, the main difference between the two is that NTTs cannot be traded or altered. Once accepted, an NTT becomes attached to you and your wallet forever. NTTs can also be referred to as Soulbound tokens (SBTs). SBTs are non-transferable tokens that represent commitments, credentials, affiliations, or any other verifiable detail that is linked to your identity. “Soulbound” is a term that is widely used in gaming. When a player picks up a soulbound item, which could be a weapon or tool of any sort, they can no longer trade or sell these items to other players. With SBTs, your wallet becomes your “soul” and the tokens that you receive become attached to your soul, not to be altered or traded in the future. NTTs and SBTs will be a crucial part of the Web3 social environment.
Why SBTs?
Soulbound NFTs come with a variety of use cases that fit into a wider decentralized society. Take for instance, POAPs (Proof of Attendance Protocols), a concept already widely adopted by the Web3 community, and imagine if it were to become soulbound. Soulbound POAPs would be a sign of whether or not the owner actually attended the event, rather than whether they may have paid the actual attendee for the token. Once the token becomes soulbound, it becomes valid proof of attendance, eliminating all possibilities of the owner having paid for such proof. This method can be then applied to all sorts of other documents that require authentication: school diplomas, medical records, certifications, work experience, and more. What makes non-transferable NFTs more attractive than any standard authenticated document is that they give the user the power to own their own data as opposed to relying on a private source to retrieve it. The proof of your attendance or experience is no longer stored on a private database belonging to some organization, but rather stored immediately in your wallet– or your “soul.”
Re-imagine the Future of Work
With its unique verifying ability, SBTs have the potential to change the future of work. Imagine a world where you can carry about your own digital resume right in your crypto-wallet. Companies and organizations would issue SBTs to you as proof of your knowledge and experience. We can refer to this Proof of Knowledge and Experience as a ‘POKE.’ Recruiters and organizations who look through your wallet can instantly verify all your credentials as POKEs are unique to you and your decentralized identity. With POKEs, recruiters no longer have to ask for references or call your alma mater in order to verify your attendance. The future of work can become safer and simpler with the use of non-transferable tokens as proof of work. POKEs are NTTs specifically for credentials for on-chain resume
- Orgs can easily give people work experience tokens
- Users can easily claim them, can choose what tokens they want on their wallet
- Creates a network of trust for professional development