West-coast based spatial data and analytics firm RMDS Lab plans to create the first-ever dedicated science NFT Marketplace before the end of the first quarter of the year.

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RMDS Lab is known as a data and artificial intelligence (AI) platform based in California, and founded by IBM’s former chief data scientist Alex Liu in 2009 to create a global community of data scientists and researchers, and to promote scientific innovation through data and AI.

As NFTs increased in popularity, RMDS says ‘a huge demand for NFT minting and listing’ played a part in RMDS’ decision to create a way to sell NFTs for research and technology-associated IP.

The NFT market rocketed almost 43,000% between 2020 and 2021, according to the cryptocurrency exchange Binance. RMDS’ goals in moving into NFT sales are to connect scientists with investors, as well as to link science and technology IP with related collectors, investors and science enthusiasts. The intent is to provide new fundraising channels for science and technology projects, and accelerate technology development. NFTs have mostly been art and music based, with gaming and literature joining in at times as well.

Liu explained  “for scientists, it is often difficult to get funding, and to get funding through the traditional channels takes a long time.” He added that “NFTs can simplify this and help people to focus more on their real work,” in a statement released by Chemistry World.  “Also, scientists do not have many channels to reach investors, and an NFT marketplace can expand their reach.”

NFTs and science have already made a couple of moves that might of sparked the idea that science can in fact sell NFTs. In June 2021, The University of California, Berkeley announced that they will be auctioning off the patent disclosures behind two Nobel prize-winning discoveries made there by selling them as NFTs. They set aside part of a fundraising effort to support basic research at UC Berkeley; the plan worked out for the better, and the University earned $55,000 from an NFT that was based on James Allisons breakthrough research behind cancer immunotherapy back in the 1990s.

Liu acknowledges that the technology behind NFTs is still evolving and developing to address these environmental issues, as well as security and copyright issues. “We are connected to a lot of experts in blockchain AI, and we want to develop this marketplace,” he stated. “With our talent pool we want to help solve some of these problems and make NFT exchange better.”

The platform is still in developmental stages and is set to be completed by the end of March.

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