Overview

The Problem

While one-in-six Australians claim to own some kind of cryptocurrency* adoption of NFTs and blockchain technology is still low. While Avatar Profile Picture (PFP) projects are an excellent way of seeing NFT adoption in practice, rarely is there any insight into how they can be applied in real-world practice. One of the bigger barriers to entry is a lack of trust in cryptocurrency and NFT adoption, understandable given the volatility of the market - an issue not just localised to Australia. This, paired with the gap between beginners and the more experienced, presents a challenge which AussieMates hops into.

The Opportunity

The opportunity lies in leveraging how readily NFT avatar projects are being adopted, and transforming this into ways that promote usage in mainstream industries; both of which work in tandem to increase the value of the NFT itself. By building a community that bridges the gap between novice and expert, an environment will be created where the adopters of this technology will be able to be at the forefront of reshaping the way people go to events, engage with brands and connect to the the things they love most. The opportunities of how NFTs can be applied to real world functionality, truly is endless and the opportunities for AussieMates and their owners start with a jpeg of a Kangaroo.

Our Story

AussieMates was founded by siblings based in Sydney, Australia who are NFT and crypto enthusiasts. We knew we wanted to create a project that paid tribute to our home country.

This is not intended to be a localised project, actually, the complete opposite. The aim is to not only expose Aussies to the wonders of the NFT world but to expose the NFT world to the spirit of Aussies.

Art

When we were deciding what to create as the visual representation of AussieMates, we had so many different ideas but kept coming back to the Kangaroo. The famed Roo has been represented so widely across the globe as an Australian icon, we knew it was the right choice to bring our community together. Equally as important were the traits that came along with them. We knew these had to be a mix of iconic Australian symbols, as well as the ones Aussies have adopted from around the globe. Some are more symbolic of Australian culture and others we poke a bit of good-natured fun at.

We have a vast array of differentiating traits, each varying in degrees of rarity, which will be revealed after we mint.

Our art is different from the standard PFP. This was intentional as we wanted to do a full body Roo to not only be unique, but to future-proof the art so that when we begin developing tangible Mates, we have a complete Roo to do this.

*A Report on the State of Cryptocurrency in Australia Finder’s Cryptocurrency Report 2.; 2021. https://dvh1deh6tagwk.cloudfront.net/finder-au/wp-uploads/2021/08/Finders-Cryptocurrency-Report-2.pdf