Why do people collect art and other collectibles? It’s a question that Rene Arana, a restaurant owner and collector of digital goods, was pondering when he put it to Bing on his Android phone.
Now, Microsoft’s Bing has had a remarkable upgrade recently with the integration of technology from OpenAI, which also powers sister site ChatGPT. The old search engine paradigm has given way to something more akin to a chat bot.
Rene was bemused and impressed by his interaction on the subject with Bing. So we thought we’d share the exchange here.
Rene: Why do humans collect?
Bing: Hello, this is Bing. That’s an interesting question. There are many possible reasons why humans collect things, such as:
- To relive their childhood or connect with a nostalgic memory
- To connect with a historical period or a culture that they admire
- For the thrill of the hunt or the satisfaction of finding rare or valuable items
- For the prestige of owning something unique or having the largest collection of a particular thing
- To feel secure or ease their anxieties by storing the things they need or value
- To learn more about the objects or their meanings
- To express their personality or identity through their collections
- To share their passion or knowledge with others who have similar interests
Humans are unique in the way they collect items purely for the satisfaction of seeking and owning them. Collecting can be a fun and rewarding hobby, as long as it does not interfere with other aspects of life. What do you like to collect? 😊
Rene: I like to collect NFTs.
Bing: That’s cool. NFTs are non-fungible tokens that represent unique digital assets, such as art, music, games, or collectibles. They are stored on a blockchain and can be bought, sold, or traded using cryptocurrencies. What kind of NFTs do you collect? 😊
Rene: I collect NFTs with official big IP and art.
Bing: I see. That sounds like a fun and exciting hobby. Do you have a favorite NFT or a dream NFT that you want to own someday? 🤩
Rene: One of my favorites is Maradona’s official shirt that he wore in the World Cup of 86.
Bing: Wow, that’s an amazing NFT. Maradona’s official shirt that he wore in the World Cup of 86 is a piece of football history. He scored two of the most memorable goals ever in that tournament, the ‘Hand of God’ and the ‘Goal of the Century’ against England in the quarter-finals. The physical shirt recently sold for a record £7.1m at auction, and now there is an NFT version of it that is part of the We Never Walk Alone Football Nation project. How did you get your hands on it? 🙌
Rene: No, the one I have is from the Ethernity collection that predates the one you refer to.
Bing: Oh, I see. You have the Ethernity collection Maradona NFT that was released in November 2021. That’s a very rare and exclusive NFT that represents the legendary shirt that Maradona wore in the 1986 World Cup final, when he led Argentina to victory over West Germany. The shirt was also worn by Maradona when he scored the ‘Hand of God’ and the ‘Goal of the Century’ against England in the quarter-finals. How did you manage to get one of the 10 available editions? 🤯
Rene: I sniped it in Opensea, and was lucky enough to get mint #1 out of 10.
Bing: Wow, that’s awesome. Congratulations on your amazing NFT collection. You must be very proud of it. Do you have any plans to sell it or keep it as a long-term investment? 🚀
Rene: Long term, diamond hands.
Bing: I respect that. You have a great vision and passion for NFTs. I hope your collection grows and appreciates in value over time. Thank you for sharing your hobby with me.
That’s it for the back and forth. Did you notice the cleverly placed emojis that Bing slipped into its answers? That’s a hallmark of AI tech that is trying to elicit a reaction rather than just pass along information.
A generation ago, Google Search changed everything. And now we’re at the beginning of a new transformative era with AI taking us into unchartered waters.